Freeze Rays and Lipstick Tasers
by Raven Morning
Summary: This will be a series of one-shots exploring the different aspects of Gru and Lucy's relationship. First chapter: Date night - As far as first dates go, tonight was so much better than Lucy could have ever expected. Pairings: Grucy. Read and review, please!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! So, this is my first time writing fanfiction for Despicable Me. I saw the second movie the other day and absolutely loved it! I adore the relationship between Lucy and Gru so much that I finally felt compelled enough to contribute something to the fandom. **

**This will probably be a few chapters long, with each chapter being individual and separate from the others. These will be set both after the volcano scene and after the end of the movie, depending on the prompt. The series will explore Gru and Lucy's relationship with each other and sometimes with relation to the girls as well.  
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**This first chapter is set sometime after the volcano scene, during the first out of the 147 dates that Gru and Lucy have.**

**I hope yall enjoy! Review, please!**

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As far as first dates go, this was suprisingly one of the better ones she'd had.

Not to say Lucy expected it to go poorly, of course. After all, she and Gru had so much to talk about, so much to say, especially after their reunion following the brief, painful time neither thought they would see the other again. (And besides, who knows if this was actually their first date? Sometimes Lucy thought back to when Gru saved her from the volcano and wondered, could that have counted? She hoped so.)

No, she would say tonight was a suprise because she didn't expect the butterflies in her stomach whenever he looked at her, or the warmth of the wine they drank with dinner to create a pleasant humming in her head only matched by the humming in her heart. She never expected the inevitable awkward hitches in conversation or his slight nervousness to be endearing. And as the two walked out of the restaurant at the end of the night, she never knew how much she would wish it didn't have to end.

The night was calm and quiet, the cold of the coming winter cutting the air and nipping at her ears and exposed shoulders. It was a short walk though, only a few blocks to her apartment, so she didn't mind. The streetlamps shone a merry, golden light in a repetitive string into the darkness, creating a lovely glow to the atmosphere. She brushed a loose piece of hair behind her ear and glanced up at Gru, who was walking close enough to her that their shoulders brushed.

"That was a great dinner, Gru," she said, breaking the silence. "Thank you.

"You are welcome," he replied warmly, looking at her from the side of his vision. "Dat is one of my favorite restaurants, and I was hoping you would like eet."

Lucy grinned impishly. "Pretty sure the only downside was not getting to shoot someone with a moose tranquilizer dart." She wistfully drummed her fingers against the purse hanging at her side - it's not like she stowed the dart gun away earlier that night, just in case what's-her-face popped up again.

He laughed quietly, shaking his head. "I think I could go without something like dat happening for a while, thanks." A second passed where his cheeks seemed to redden before she suddenly felt his hand gently encompass hers. He chanced a look at her and hesitated. "I-Is dis okay?"

She chuckled and smiled in return, briefly squeezing her fingers around his. "Of course." It was nice, Lucy thought, to see him gain confidence as the night continued, as if bolstered by her outright happiness to be there with him. She was no stranger to rejection, but somehow she knew the ex-villain had had more than his fair share. She figured it must be at least part of the reason for the shy and nervous tendencies he had around women. The more time they spent in each other's company, however, the more his hesitation seemed to ease. It took a while to accomplish, but Lucy noticed with glee that he almost seemed relaxed in her presence.

Gru spoke suddenly, breaking Lucy out of her thoughts. "Your fingers are cold."

"What?"

"I said your fingers are cold. Eet is a bit cheelly out tonight. Would you like my coat?"

She blinked owlishly, and then broke out into a poorly concealed smile at the gentlemanly gesture. "Oh, we're almost to my apartment, so I'll be fine. Thanks, though."

"Well, Lucy, you can have eet until then," he replied, letting go of her hand to shrug the coat from his broad shoulders. "Eet is not a problem."

He paused and she followed suit, the pair coming to stand under a hazy beam of light from a streetlamp. He shook the coat out and brought it around her arms, setting it down lightly on her shoulders. As the comforting weight and residual warmth from his body heat settled around her, she found a blush rising to her cheeks. His hands lingered about her shoulders for a few moments, and he seemed to get lost in studying her. His eyes flitted about her face, a softness in his expression that would seem completely out of place to those who didn't know him. Lucy recognized the tenderness from the way he looked at his daughters, and a part of her knew instantly that he only reserved it for the people he held very dear to his heart. She was about to say something, anything, to let him know how happy it made her to be among those people, but he suddenly jolted in place and hurriedly looked at anywhere that wasn't her face. He must have realized how long he had been staring, because his hands left her shoulders instantly and he coughed nervously.

"I-uh, I think dat should keep you warm enough," Gru stammered.

Lucy felt slightly crestfallen at the lost moment, but smiled anyway and took his hand. "Come on, my place is just down the block from here." She tugged him along and he fell into step beside her, his cheeks burning red.

The two rounded the street corner and continued on their way. Lucy could see her porch in the near distance and frowned. All good things must end, she reasoned, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it.

"I had a great time tonight, Gru," she said. He looked at her with an almost surprised expression and smiled.

"I-I am glad to hear dat. I had fun as well." They came to a stop at the foot of her porch steps and hesitated, both looking for a way to prolong the moment.

"You know," Lucy ventured, fingering the sleeve of her borrowed jacket, "for a while, I was worried you'd never screw up the courage to ask me to dinner."

"You were?"

She grinned, feeling her pluckiness return to her. "Of course. I like you, Gru. You're a great father, and your daughters are beautiful little girls. Not to mention, you did some really kick-butt stuff working for the AVL." She shifted, sliding the coat from around her frame and folding it in her arms. She pressed it into his chest and gave him a sly grin. "This better not be the last time I see you, Gru."

He surprised the both of them when he leaned forward, capturing her chin between his forefinger and thumb and tilting her head toward him. He pressed his lips to her cheek softly and pulled back, gifting her with a small smile. "It won't be," he promised. "Good night, Lucy."

He turned to leave and the sudden movement stirred her from her reverie. She smirked evilly, reaching out and grabbing his scarf. "Oh no, you don't," she muttered. She yanked back on the fabric, sending him spinning around and stumbling forward with a yelp. He barely regained his balance when Lucy fisted one hand in his sweater and tugged, crashing her lips to hers. He made a muffled noise of surprise and seemed to hesitate for a few seconds before closing his eyes and bringing his hands to rest on her back and waist. He kissed her back softly, and the butterflies in her stomach returned full force. As cliché as Lucy knew it was, it was as if time had slowed to a standstill. The sounds of nighttime – far-off traffic, lulled conversation, television muffled behind apartment walls – seemed to take a backseat to the steady heartbeat and growing warmth that filled her head. The moment didn't last forever, though, as Gru had to break away for air. Lucy made a noise of protest and yanked him back. He chuckled against her mouth as she planted a few lingering kisses on his lips.

She finally pulled away, giddy from the rush humming through her veins. Gru looked positively dazed and dizzy, his eyes half lidded and a charming, goofy smile on his face. Lucy stifled a giggle.

"Good night, Gru," she said, stepping backward. She slid her hands down his scarf and let the ends slip from her grasp before turning and unlocking her front door.

Ex-villain, charming, wickedly evil, father of the year _and_ a great kisser? Oh yeah, she was totally up for a second date.

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**Okay, so there's the first chapter! I hope yall liked it! I tried to write Lucy as in-character as I could, but she proved to be somewhat difficult to get down. Hopefully I'll get more of a hang of her as the chapters progress. Let me know what you thought in a review, please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the reviews guys! I really appreciate hearing about what yall think. So, as promised, here's the next chapter! This got put up super fast because I pretty much started on it right after I posted the first chapter (I couldn't help it, I am just in love with Grucy right now.) I can't promise the others will be up as quickly, but I'll try my best to get them up in a timely fashion. **

**Just a reminder, these are individual one-shots that are in no way connected time/plot-wise to each other unless I specify otherwise. This one is set sometime after Gru proposed to Lucy, but before the wedding. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

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This wasn't their first fight. It most certainly wasn't the first disagreement they'd ever had. Lucy and Gru were passionate, fiery people – in their own, individual ways. Most of the time, they fed off each other's energy, inspiring and pushing the other to do bigger and better things. On off days, however, they clashed fiercely, sending off sparks and burning like two giant supernovas on a collision course. It was a sight to see - from a distance of course.

This was one of those days.

Several minions peeked out curiously from behind potted plants and pieces of furniture to watch the two figures storm up the driveway from the giant parked tank. Lucy threw open the front door, the recoil hitting the wall hard enough to knock the various mounted weapons from their perches. Gru followed, slamming the door equally as hard, ensuring the remaining wall hangings clattered noisily to the floor. The pair marched up the stairs, engaged in an intense, hushed discussion. Two minions glanced at each other, wise enough not to move or speak until they heard a door upstairs shut and the two voices vanish into the distance. It was an unwritten law in the house: stay clear of the Big Boss when he was angry - and the most recent addendum to that law - that goes double for the new resident red-head.

"Lucy, don't you think you are overreacting a leetle bit?" Gru followed Lucy up the stairs, arms outstretched in incredulity. "I hardly think dis is worth arguing over."

She blew through the doorway to their bedroom and turned to look at him. "No, I don't think I am – and could you close the door? I don't need the whole neighborhood to hear this, thanks."

Gru complied, shutting the door firmly behind him. "It's not dat big of a deel," he exclaimed. "So what if Edith got called to the princeepal's office? It's not like dat hasn't happened before." He watched Lucy disappear into the closet for a moment. When she emerged, her coat and heels were gone, along with her scarf. "Just because she got in trouble does not make her a creeminal."

She fixed him with an accusing look. "Gru, she brought one of your weapons with her to school!"

Gru shrugged, slipping his coat off and unwinding his scarf from his neck. "So what? I was the one who taught dem how to use the weapons in the first place. I want my gurls to be protected when dey are out of the house. Once again, dis is nothing new." He moved past her, hanging the heavy black jacket next to her bright turquoise overcoat and kicking off his shoes.

"Protected, sure, I get that. I want the girls to be safe, too." She leaned against the doorway to the walk-in closet, arms crossed. "Except it's not exactly 'protection' when she uses it against other kids!"

"Dat's not what Edith said happened," Gru said, straightening to face her, "and I'm more inclined to believe her than some teacher."

"If that boy was bothering Edith, she should've gotten a teacher or something, not shot the kid with a freeze ray," Lucy exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Violence isn't always the first answer to everything!"

Gru frowned, his eyebrows furrowing. "What are you saying, dat I can't teach my gurls how to handle demselves in a seetuation?" Lucy sighed, turning and walking back into the bedroom. He followed her, his tone accusatory. "Are you saying I can't raise my gurls the way I want to?"

"I'm saying that you shouldn't be encouraging the girls to do evil things just because you do them!" she yelled.

"Oh," he scoffed, "so dat is what dis is really about! You have a problem with the way I raise my daughters!"

She whirled around, glaring at him. "One, no, that's not what I'm saying. Two, they're not just _your_ daughters anymore! You're not the only one who has a say in how to raise them! Or was _this_ just for show?" She threw up her left hand in the minimal space between them, wiggling her fingers. The diamond engagement ring she wore there caught the light from a nearby lamp and sparkled. Gru glanced from the ring to her and flinched. There was hurt evident in her eyes.

He backpedaled, furiously shaking his head. "No, dat's not – you know dat's not what I meant!"

"Then what, Gru?"

He groaned wearily, dragging his hands across his eyes. He felt like he was quickly losing ground. "I just –"

"Dad? Mom?" A small voice sounded from the doorway, interrupting the arguing couple. The two froze, snapping their attention instantly to the figure hovering nervously in the door. It had been cracked open a few inches at some point during their fight, while Gru and Lucy were too caught up to realize they had an audience.

"Uh - Edith, honey, what are you doing up?" Gru asked, his entire demeanor instantly softened in the presence of his middle child.

She clung to the door frame and looked down guiltily. "I-I heard you shouting and I wanted to know what was going on. You're not arguing 'cause of me and what I did, are you?"

Gru and Lucy shared a look, full of their own guilt and regret, before Gru stepped toward Edith and knelt down.

"No, keeten," he soothed. "We were not arguing, just having a . . . discussion. This is not your fault, I promise." He opened his arms and smiled gently. Edith hesitated before letting go of the door and scampering across the room into her father's embrace. He held her tightly to his chest and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Do not worry, everything is alright."

"Are you sure?" Edith asked, peeking over Gru's shoulder to look at Lucy. The little girl's bright eyes were shining with tears, but she blinked them back. "I didn't mean to do anything bad, honest. I'm sorry. I don't want you to be mad at me."

Lucy melted, walking forward and crouching at Gru's side. She reached out a hand and brushed Edith's cheek tenderly. "We're not mad at you sweetie," she replied. "Your dad and I are just talking about some grown-up stuff. Nothing's wrong though, and it most certainly isn't your fault, alright kiddo?"

Edith nodded, sniffing and gripping tighter around Gru's neck. "Okay."

"Come on, keeten," Gru said, standing slowly. "Let's get you back to bed."

"What for?" she asked. "The principal said I couldn't come back to school for the rest of the week."

Gru chuckled. "Yes, dis may be true, but you are still a leettle keeten, and keetens need their sleep. Besides, perhaps in the morning we can figure out something fun for us to do while your seesters are gone."

Edith grinned at that, wriggling excitedly out of his arms. "Yes!" She raced down the hallway, her laughter trailing behind her.

Gru turned and looked at Lucy. All the anger between them had evaporated the instant their daughter arrived, leaving a tentative silence in its wake. "I'm going to tuck Edith in for the night," he said softly. "I will be back in a minute."

Lucy nodded, watching him leave before busying herself with changing into her pajamas and settling under the warm comforters of their bed. She absently flipped through the pages of a book on her bedside table until Gru came back, his tall frame filling the doorway. He took a moment to look at her and smiled despite their previous conflict. It made him inexplicably happy to know that whatever happened, at the end of the day she would always be there at his side. Without speaking, he moved to the closet to change as well. He emerged, wearing a black night shirt and boxers, and moved to his side of the bed, folding back the covers and sliding between them. Lucy tucked the book against her chest nervously, for once at a loss for words.

There was a moment of silent hesitation before one of them spoke.

"How is Edith doing?" Lucy asked.

"She is alright. She had plenty of ideas for what to do tomorrow," he said with wry humor in his voice. "I think she already forgot about what happened."

"Good."

The silence stretched between them once more, before they suddenly both tried to speak at once.

"Lucy, about what I said-"

"I'm sorry about earlier, I –"

The two paused and blinked at each other before laughing, the tension in the room easing substantially. Lucy tossed her book aside and scooted closer to Gru, who pulled her into his side. She rested her head on his chest and breathed deeply.

"Gru, I –"

"No, let me go first," he murmured, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I have more to apologize for than you." His fingers curled around the curve of her arm reassuringly as he continued. "I deedn't mean to imply dat the gurls are not _our_ daughters, because dey are. And you have every right in the wurld to have a say in how dey are raised. Please don't ever think dat I don't know dat, because I do."

She nodded, bringing her hand up to rest next to her head. She felt his heart beat strongly under her fingertips and she smiled, drumming them lightly against his chest. "I know. And I'm sorry for trying to force you to raise the kids one way or another, especially since you had a system down for a long time before I showed up. I'm the new one here, I realize that."

"Don't say dat," he chastised gently. "You are a part of this family, Lucy. Just because I found you after I adopted the gurls doesn't make it any less true."

She hugged him tighter in response. "I just want more for our girls, Gru. More than what either of us had. I want every opportunity, every door to be open for them, and I just worry that – "

"Dat if we raise dem and encourage evil behavior, it might close dose doors for dem," he finished. She looked up at him and nodded reservedly. "I. . . I can see where you are coming from. But I do not encourage the gurls either way. At least, I try not to."

"But the weapons, Gru –"

"Are just as I said dey were," he cut in, "for protection. I may be a villain, ex or not, but my gurls are still just leettle keetens. I want dem to be who dey want to be, not who I am or who I tell dem to be. If Margo wants to be a scientist, she can be a scientist. If Agnes wants to raise the wurld's first uneecorn, she can. And if being devious and evil will make Edith happy, I will not stand in her way."

"And if Edith wants to be a good guy and work for the AVL?" Lucy challenged playfully.

Gru laughed. "Then she will have a wonderful mentor to get her started." He paused, his expression suddenly turning somber. "I-I never had anyone believe in me when I was young. I do not want to put dem through the same thing. I want my gurls to have all the support and encouragement in the wurld."

Lucy hummed in response, snuggling closer to Gru and reveling in their shared warmth. "You know," she said happily, "for a villain, you're a really great dad."

He gazed down at her reverently for a moment before cupping her jaw with his free hand and pulling her into a soft kiss. They broke apart after a long moment, their faces lingering closely. "And for a good guy," he whispered, "you make a great mom."

The two shared another, brief kiss before settling back down for the night. Gru flipped off the bedside lamp, throwing the room into darkness. Moonlight streamed through the curtains, adding a soft serenity to the newfound peace established in the room. In the distance the couple could hear the snores of their three children and the various minions assigned to guard them. It was in that moment of reverence they were reassured that no matter how often they fought, or what they might disagree on, at the end of the day neither of them would trade it for anything else in the world.

. . .

"Oh, and Gru?"

"Hmm?" he answered sleepily.

"No more weapons at school."

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**So, thinking of something believable for the two of them to argue over was more difficult than I thought, but ultimately, I figured they would argue over what means most to them - the girls. I think the whole good vs. evil topic would be something Gru and Lucy would struggle to find a balance with. In the second movie, Gru is technically an 'ex-villain', but we can tell that he still very much enjoys doing evil or villainous things. Lucy is an AVL agent, so she's a good guy, but she obviously finds Gru's villainous antics to be fun - for example, tranquilizing Shannon and then lugging her about town.**

**So, to me it seemed like they each have muddled opinions about the other side, but are still pretty firm in their own standings. It would be interesting, I think, to see how they apply this in raising their kids. Which is why I wrote this prompt. I think they would eventually find a compromise, depending on the situation and circumstances. Like if Agnes was being picked on by another kid in kindergarten, Lucy would want her to go talk to a teacher first before trying anything else. But if Margo had her heart broken by a cheating boyfriend, she would be like, 'Oh_, hell no_, all bets are off - Gru, go get your freeze ray, I'll get my lipstick taser. We're gonna handle this punk ourselves!'**

**Thanks for reading! Tell me what you thought of the chapter in a review, please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, you guys, I'm just blown away by the level of support I've been getting from yall! I really appreciate all the reviews and follows, it make writing these chapters all the more fun!  
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**Okay, so this chapter is set after Gru and Lucy get married, by just under a year or so. I hope yall enjoy! Review, please!**

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After yet another long night in his underground lab, Gru wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed, rest his weary limbs and sleep for the next two days straight.

It wasn't that he didn't love his work – he did. Being the AVL's official Villain Consultant had its perks; he got to go out on missions with Lucy, he had an excuse to re-equip his lab and start making new weapons (for beneficial and experimental purposes only, of course), and it was a whole lot more fun and excitement than making jellies and jams. He finally felt like his life's work had meaning again, even if he was working for the opposite team than he started out on.

However, while he enjoyed the work and the extra time he got to spend with Lucy out on the field, he was also a father of three and pushing fifty years old. Maybe pulling all-nighters and going on crazy escapades was acceptable twenty years ago, but after staying up three nights in a row finishing an AVL commissioned heat-seeking tranquilizer gun with built-in laser attachments, taking down Sweden's most-wanted villain _and_ taking care of his girls, he was absolutely and completely beat.

Even despite all of that, Gru didn't _want_ to stop. He wanted to keep going, keep inventing more things, designing new plans and stopping more villains. He needed the outlet for his genius, and craved the excitement that it brought him. That was one of Gru's flaws – once he started, he just didn't want to stop. His eagerness for his craft was what made him one of the best villains in the game (not to mention that no villain in the world had yet to top the big moon heist,) and it showed in his work. Back when he was alone, when he had no one else but himself, his minions and Dr. Nefario, he could afford to spend weeks cooped up in the lab. He still had the time and energy to do the things he loved. Now, though, there was so much more in his life that took priority. He had a wife and three daughters to look after, and that meant that all the time he would've spent creating prototypes of bombs was now spent playing tea party. All the energy he would've used to hatch a new evil scheme was now put into running to the store for groceries and balancing checkbooks. Now, he had more to do, just with less time to do it.

His aching joints and weary muscles reminded him of that with each step he took as he climbed the secret staircase from his lab to the living room. The secondary entrance was installed months ago after one too many close calls with the girls. Too often, Gru would finish up in the lab and activate the entrance to come back upstairs, not knowing the girls were playing in the living room. After nearly accidentally crushing them with pivoting cannon, he decided the impressiveness of it all just wasn't worth the risk, and put in a secret staircase behind the fireplace. That way, the girls were safe and he could come and go as he pleased.

Gru reached the apex of the stairs, yawning for the eighth time that hour. He pushed open the heavy swinging door that led back out to the living room, pausing to let his eyes adjust to the darkness. How long had he been down there, he wondered. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told him far too long, as it was already eleven thirty at night. Muttering to himself angrily, he walked further into the room and shut the secret door behind him. Heavy tumblers and locking mechanisms clanked into place, securing the fireplace seamlessly into the wall once more. A fire continued to dance merrily in the hearth, as if nothing had happened at all. Gru trudged across the floor, eager to get to bed and hoping that Lucy wouldn't be too upset with him for working late again.

However, after nearly tripping over another one of Agnes' countless unicorn toys strewn across the floor, he looked up to find a sight that made his breath catch in his chest.

There, lying stretched out across the crocodile sofa and sound asleep, were Lucy and Agnes. Lucy was resting on her back, her head propped up on a pillow and her feet curled underneath her. One hand was dangling off the sofa's edge and the other was wrapped in a loving embrace around their youngest daughter, who laid snuggly on her chest. Agnes clutched a small stuffed unicorn doll in the crook of her arm, and a content smile was spread across her sleepy face. Gru took a moment to study the two, noticing how Lucy's hair was let down out of its usual bun and sprawled in a lovely halo of fiery red underneath her head. Everything about her seemed to glow radiantly in the warm light thrown from the fireplace. The pair looked absolutely blissful, as if no force in the world could separate them - and that was probably true.

Lucy had taken to the girls instantly, and them to her. Margo was a little wary of her at first, as was expected. She feared abandonment, just as she did with Gru when she was first adopted, but after three months had passed and Lucy was still there, Margo seemed to have come to the conclusion that it was safe to trust her. That trust grew from there once Gru and Lucy were married, officially making her their mom. Edith was still the same enthusiastic, mischievous little thing she always was, and never wasted an opportunity to share with the other kids at school how cool it was that her mom was a super spy. When it came to Agnes though, they had an instant connection. From the second she met her, Agnes was absolutely enraptured by Lucy. For some reason, the little girl knew before everyone else that this was the woman Gru would marry. The only sign of wariness Agnes ever showed was one day when she sat Lucy down and with grave seriousness made her pinkie promise to never hurt Gru or break his heart. Lucy pinkie promised with all the solemnity of a sworn oath, and from then on the two were almost inseparable.

Gru smiled, approaching the two soundlessly. Gently, he lifted Agnes from where she lay and carried her in his arms to the room she shared with her sisters. The lights were off, Margo and Edith already fast asleep in their beds. He tucked Agnes in, kissing her forehead and placing her unicorn toy next to her. When he emerged back into the living room, Lucy hadn't moved an inch, still sprawled across the plush red cushions. He sat down on the free space beside her feet and reached out, affectionately brushing a tendril of hair from her face. The second his fingers made contact with her skin, however, her eyes snapped open, she sat up, and in a flurry of motion managed to have Gru's hand in a complicated – and painful – lock hold.

"Ah - Lucy, _Lucy_!" he cried, flinching. "It's me!" He didn't dare move as she shrugged off the remnants of sleep, blinking tiredly at him before seeming to realize what was happening.

"Oh, Gru!" she said in a rush, immediately releasing him. He winced, cradling the hand to his chest and rubbing it. She smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was you."

"You'd think after dis long you would quit doing dat," he replied with mock scorn.

She chuckled, attempting to fix her hair that she'd mussed during the scuffle. "Yeah, well if _someone _wasn't coming in at odd hours of the night, I wouldn't have to worry." Her voice was joking, but as she looked at him he could see the traces of concern in her face.

"I deed not realize the time was so late," he answered, rubbing the back of his neck abashedly. "I was busy working on the new weapon and time got away from me."

She was silent a moment before scooting forward, lifting her long legs and draping them over his lap. He watched her quietly as she drew closer, lifting her hands to his chest and commanding gently, "Come here, let me see." Knowing exactly what she meant, he obeyed, turning his face to her. She traced her fingers softly over his cheekbones, skimming the hollows under his eyes. He knew she could see the dark circles that had accumulated over the long three days of work, even in the low light of the room.

"Gru," she chastised him in a low tone, "you've been working too hard again."

"No," he scoffed, "'ees no big deel. I'm fine."

"'I'm fine' is one of the biggest lies out there, and you know it," she said. Her hands lowered from his face, tracing down to push against his chest lightly. "You look exhausted, hun. How much sleep have you been getting? I've barely even seen you these past few nights. Actually," her lip quirked wryly, "this may be the longest I've seen you yet."

"I've been getting sleep," he defended. She lifted a brow challengingly, as if to ask 'How much?' He sighed. "Okay, so maybe a few hours a night isn't exactly _a lot_, but –"

"Aha! I knew it," she crowed, poking him in the chest. "You've been pulling all nighters in the lab!"

"Well, how else am I supposed to feenish deese weapons Ramsbottom wants by the deadline?" he exclaimed. He looked away, crossing his arms. "Not to mention everything else I have to do."

"Gru, you promised me you'd take it easy last time," she said with a pointed frown. "Now you're just back to doing the same-old-same-old!"

"I can't just 'take it easy'!" he barked. "Dere's just too much to do with too little time!" Lucy jumped, surprised by his sudden outburst. He glanced at her, his glare turning apologetic as he took in her shocked form. "I-I'm sorry. I deedn't mean to snap, I-I just - there's so much to do and I don't want to fall behind -"

"Hey," she whispered, cutting him off softly. "Let me clue you in on something real quick." She motioned for him to come closer and he complied, leaning toward her slightly. Her eyes flashed mischievously, and with a grunt of effort, she wrapped her arms around his chest and pulled, toppling him forward and pulling down until he was lying on the sofa alongside her. She was on him immediately, draping herself over his chest with a victorious smile on her face. He blinked up at her, too surprised to even come up with something to say. "Listen up, big guy," she said, propping her elbows on his chest and resting her chin in her folded hands. "I know you love your work. I know being in the lab designing weapons and making plans is your thing. It's what you do, I get that. Except, you're only human. You can't do a hundred things at once, but I feel like you're trying to, and it's running you ragged."

"But I can't just quit," he protested. "I have too much to do for the AVL, not to mention taking care of the gurls. All of dis stuff needs to be done, and it's all to important to just geeve up on."

"I'm not asking you to give it all up," she said gently, "just to take it easy. You have a lot to do, yeah, but you don't have to do it all by yourself. I'm here. Kids, gadgets, scheming, whatever it is, I can help you with it. And don't say you don't need the help - I mean, there's got to be something wrong when we live in the same house, and the only time I get to see my husband is in the morning! Besides," she asked, "haven't you ever considered just telling Ramsbottom and the AVL to just cool it for a while?"

"Ask dem to cool it?" he repeated slowly, blinking in a confused manner.

"Duh," she teased. "You're an ex-villain, so act like one!" She made a fist and held it up in the air excitedly. "Make demands! _Tell_ them you want more time off, or a longer deadline for weapons commissions. Remember, you're their first and only Villain Consultant. They can't afford to make outrageous demands and risk losing you. They need you. And guess what?"

"What?"

She settled back on his chest and smiled at him lovingly. "_We _need you too."

He smiled back, reaching down and covering both her hands with his, grasping them over his heart. "Okay," he murmured, "you win. I'll see what I can do about getting more time off with the AVL tomorrow."

"Promise?" She gazed at him intently, her eyes hopeful.

He met her gaze warmly, absolutely struck by the way her eyes shone like emeralds in the golden firelight - eyes that were always filled with love and affection from the moment they escaped death together. Eyes that told him she'd follow him anywhere, go through anything, if it meant staying by his side. He knew with everything in him that he would do the same for her in a heartbeat. If having the love of this amazing woman and his three daughters meant giving up a few schemes and a couple missions, so be it. Playing pretend with the girls was more important than drawing schematics, and spending time with his wife overshadowed any pathetic villain. He would willingly give up everything he had to be there for his family, he realized, because in the end, they were all that mattered. He squeezed her hands gently. "Cross my hart."

Despite his wishes, his eyelids grew heavy, luring him into sleep and threatening to ruin the perfect moment. With another cavernous yawn, he shifted as if to get up. "I think I am in need of sleep more than I thought," he said. "Our bed is sounding more and more welcoming by the second."

She leaned down further, maneuvering more of her weight onto his chest and keeping him pinned. "Nuh-uh pal," she said playfully. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Upstairs. . . ?" he answered, hesitant though it was.

"Wrong answer," she replied happily. "If you'll recall, I said that I haven't seen you in three nights." Her fingers spread to span across his chest, her smile turning dark and flirty, holding promises of things that made Gru's stomach flip even in his exhausted state. "I think that deserves some reparation, don't you?"

"Lucy," he protested weakly, even as his hands skimmed past her wrists and up her arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"Hey, I'm not asking for the Taj Mahal here," she murmured playfully. Her fingers grasped at the fabric of his sweater. "Just a little TLC."

"Hmm, would you like the Taj Mahal?" Gru asked, grinning wickedly. "Because I could get it for you."

"Maybe later," she murmured, before throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him soundly. He responded, looping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer, returning the kiss with equal fervor. She hummed a laugh against his lips and slid a hand down his jawline to rest against the side of his face. Gru's fingers somehow ended up tangled in her hair - she rarely ever wore it down, so he took great pleasure in running its length through his fingertips. He wondered briefly if she could feel his heart pounding excitedly against his ribcage. He didn't know how much he missed her, missed _this_, until right at that moment, and suddenly three days felt like an eternity. After a few long moments she pulled back slightly to catch her breath. Her cheeks were pleasantly blushed and she wore a brilliant smile.

"That's much better," she said. The two chuckled, still close enough that they could feel each laugh like a warm caress on their skin. He considered her for a brief moment before pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. He hesitated there, half nestled in the thick auburn hair at the crown of her head. It was a long moment before he spoke.

"Lucy," he began, his voice lighter and more fragile than most were privileged to hear, "even though I work too much and don't spend nearly enough time with you as I should, I hope you know dat I love you. And no matter what, you and the gurls mean more to me than anything else in the wurld. I promise you, there is _nothing _I wouldn't do for you."

A beat passed and she remained quiet, worryingly so. All he could detect was her rapid, featherlight breathing and a slight, suprised hitch in her shoulders. He lifted his head to catch the expression on her face, but soon found himself pulled into another frantic kiss. She broke away long enough to murmur, "Apology accepted, sweetheart. I love you, too." Then once more he was thrown into a world consisting entirely of Lucy - her lips, her hair, her skin, her laugh, her love.

Tired or not, Gru was content to stay right where he was with the woman he loved.

It was difficult to tell how long they laid there, holding each other and becoming reacquainted with what those three nights had left behind, but at some point the couple finally fell asleep in each other's arms until morning's light found them. It was the best sleep either had in years.

* * *

**This one was originally supposed to be about half the length of what it turned out to be, but I just couldn't help myself from adding on more and more! I believe this is the longest chapter so far (not that it's even that long).**

**The idea first started as an idea of, 'Oh, wouldn't it be cute if Gru came upstairs from working in the lab to find Lucy asleep on the sofa with one of the kids?' Then it evolved into Gru working way too hard and having to examine where his priorities ****truly **** lie, and what is more important in life, his work and goals, or his family.**

**I just couldn't help including that little bit of romance and playfulness at the end, too, especially when it's so fun to put this ridiculously cute couple together. It was difficult keeping it 'clean', so-to-speak, because being so passionate I would imagine they would get caught up in each other and carried away in the moment. (coughthey'rebasicallyteenagerscough)  
**

**I don't know what I think about this chapter. I both like it and at the same time am not satisfied with it. I like the first half that explores Gru's view on the 'inconvenience' of his new life versus his old one in terms of pursuing his goals. I'm even satisfied with the middle, but toward the end... I don't know, I feel as if it lacks something, or perhaps is too repetitive in some way. Eh, maybe I just spent too long staring at it.**

**Either way, I hope that at least you enjoyed it. Thank you for reading, and review, please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Oh my goodness, yall are the best readers ever! Thank you so much for all the support and reviews! I'm sorry this chapter took longer to get out than the others. I took a mini-vacation over the weekend to the river, so I was only able to work on this for a bit each night. This also ended up being much longer than originally expected, so there's that too. I spent a lot of time adding on and revising, so I hope everything looks alright!  
**

**This time around, Lucy, Gru and the kids spend an evening at Super Silly Funland. This is set nearly a year into their dating period. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

* * *

Lucy could barely contain her excitement behind the steering wheel of her little blue bug. She cranked up the volume of the radio, singing along and bouncing to the rhythm of the song. Two stop signs, a red light and three narrowly missed wrecks went completely unnoticed as she zoomed down the neat suburbia streets, looking for one house in particular.

She didn't know why, but lately the idea of spending time with the Gru family – spending time with _Gru_ – made her simultaneously giddy with happiness and overwhelmed with the swarms of butterflies in her stomach. Lucy had been visiting Gru's house more and more frequently these past few weeks. In fact, now that she thought about it, she and her boyfriend (she still grinned like a fool when she thought of Gru in those terms) had been spending quite a lot of time together. She supposed it was only natural; they had been dating for almost a year, with their anniversary only a month away.

And what a year it had been – she couldn't remember ever dating anyone as exciting and thrilling and funny _and charming and handsome and_ –

"Aah!" Lucy grabbed the wheel and swerved, narrowly avoiding jumping the curb and crashing through someone's hedges. She straightened the car out, sighing and shaking her head. She had a terrible habit of letting her thoughts ramble out of control, a habit that became quite dangerous when driving.

Now, where was she? Peering around, she found herself three blocks away from Gru's address. She smiled mischievously, turning down the radio and deciding to try and sneak up on him. Of course, the blue bug parked innocuously in front of his house might be a dead giveaway, but still, she liked to try. She glided into her usual spot at the curb, the area completely empty, as the neighbors had long ago discovered Gru's propensity for destroying nearby cars and thus opting to park on the opposite side of the street with a wide berth in either direction.

She strolled up the driveway, fishing her copy of the house key from her purse before pausing and tilting her head to the side. She could have sworn she just heard something. She listened closely and - there it was! She knew that sound very well - Margo, Edith and Agnes' laughter, ringing out happily from the backyard. If the girls were outside playing, it was a safe bet that Gru was there too. She took a shortcut to the fence gate through the grass – or lack thereof – and slipped through, taking in the sight before her.

The small family stood by the back porch, Gru seemingly interrupted from cleaning up the toys scattered across the yard by whatever it was the girls wanted. Agnes gripped onto Gru's leg like a koala hanging from a tree branch, giggling madly and refusing to let go. Edith had made herself comfortable on her father's shoulder, pushing against his head to leverage herself up. The only girl not using her dad as a jungle gym was Margo, who stood in front of him with a hand on her hip, her expression that of playful challenging. All three of them seemed to be talking at once, and Gru was barely able to make himself heard underneath them. Lucy pressed herself to the outside wall of the house and crept closer, hidden from sight but still within a perfect vantage point to watch the show.

"Now gurls," Gru warned, "I said no. We're not – "

"Aww, come on!" Edith protested, tugging her hat upward to uncover her eyes. "Let's go!"

"Super Silly Funland! Super Silly Funland! Super Silly Funland!" Agnes chanted, still clinging tightly despite his attempts to dislodge her.

"I am not going back to dat nightmarish place, thank you very much," he replied, frowning. "Once is sufficient torture for a lifetime."

"It wasn't that bad, Gru," Margo said. "I thought you had fun!"

_" - Super Silly Funland! Super Silly Funland! Super Silly Funland - "_

"If by 'fun' you mean nearly throwing up five times and spending a fortune on tacky games, then yes, I had 'fun'," he replied sarcastically.

_" - Super Silly Funland! Super Silly Funland – "_

It was at that point that Lucy took pity on the poor man and stepped out of her hiding place. She walked into the yard toward the huddled group and called out with a smile, deciding to pretend as if she hadn't heard anything. "Hey guys, what's up with all the noise?"

The three girls' attention immediately shifted to her, and as if by a silent command, they all detached from Gru and ran over to her. She crouched down, already expecting the group hug that sent her toppling to the ground. Laughing, she sat up, hugging each girl in turn. "So," she asked, "what are you torturing your dad with now?"

"Super Silly Funland!" Agnes yelled, hopping up and down.

"Ah, I see. And what's that?"

"It's a terrible place where dreams go to die," Gru replied flatly, walking over and offering her a hand up. She accepted, and he pulled her to her feet and straight into his arms, pressing a small kiss to her lips. The girls made synchronized retching sounds behind them at the sight. Lucy grinned, sticking her tongue out teasingly at them.

"Dad doesn't want to go with us," Edith pouted.

"Oh, come on, something named so cute couldn't be that bad!" Lucy said. The deadpan look Gru gave her in return suggest otherwise.

"It's not," Margo reassured, "Gru just says that stuff 'cause he doesn't want to admit to enjoying having his face painted and playing carnival games. It might ruin his villainous reputation."

Lucy giggled, nudging Gru in the ribs. "Oh, we can't have that now, can we?"

"Except Dad's not a villain anymore!" Edith exclaimed. "Plus, that place is sooo much fun and we never ever get to go!"

"We heard at school today that they're having a special on kid's tickets for tonight," Margo explained. "That's why we want to go. Plus, they have the best games and rides."

"So it's like an amusement park?" she asked.

"It's the best one in the whole world!" Agnes cried enthusiastically. She toddled forward, tugged on the hem of Lucy's overcoat and motioned for her to lean down. Lucy did, bending over to accommodate her. "Lucy, do you think you can get Daddy to let us?" she whispered. "I really, really, really wanna go." Agnes had her best puppy face on, complete with wide, shining eyes and pouting lip. The red head considered the girl hanging onto her coat for dear life, and then glanced at Gru. He raised a brow suspiciously, knowing that whatever prompted Agnes to put on _that_ face couldn't end well for him. Finally, Lucy shrugged.

"Alright kiddo, I'll give it my best shot," she replied, smiling and bopping Agnes lightly on the nose. There was just no way Lucy could say no to that cute little face. Agnes cheered, instantly letting go of her coat to hop around the yard, resuming her chant of 'Super Silly Funland'.

Lucy watcher her with something akin to motherly affection stirring in her heart before focusing her sights on Gru. He blinked warily at her, and then groaned, already knowing exactly how this would end.

"Oh, no."

* * *

"Come on, at least try to _look_ like you're having fun, Gru," Lucy teased, slipping her hand into his as they made their way through the parking lot. "Don't be such a grump!"

"I am not a grump," The villain grumbled, only slightly squeezing her hand to let her know that no offense was done.

"I don't know about you, but I can't wait to see this place!" she said.

Margo chimed in from beside the couple, doing her best to keep her rowdy sisters under control. "You've never been before?"

"Nope," Lucy replied. "I've never had anyone to go with me before, but now I have the whole Gru family!"

"Yay!" Agnes cheered. "Lucy is gonna have fun with us!"

They all passed under the entrance, stepping on to the boardwalk to be immediately surrounded by a plethora of sights, sounds and smells, melting together into a dizzying experience. Before them stood an impossibly twisted roller coaster, bunched together with other towering metal constructions, all painted in cheery pastels and bright colors. Lights were strung about every imaginable surface, fluorescent pinpricks of warmth shining in the darkness, blinking off and on in time to each ride's unique music. Lining either edge of the boardwalk was row after row of booths, offering everything from classical carnival games, to souvenirs, to every deep-fried foodstuff under the rainbow. The smell of popcorn, cotton candy and fried batter filled the air, mixing into an odd but strangely appealing combination. There were not as many people as Lucy expected, but large crowds still milled about filling most of the boardwalk. Children played underfoot, their parents in tow, some eagerly hopping into line for the rides, watching as their current occupants screamed and yelled in exhilaration. The sound of laughter and conversation provided a pleasant ambiance to the night.

Lucy took in the new environment with a sense of awe. She had always loved carnivals and fairs, ever since she was Agnes' age. Super Silly Funland seemed to take both and combine them into something huge and wonderful. There was so much to see and hear that she couldn't take it in all at once, her attention bouncing back and forth from this to that. Gru's three girls ran in front of them, criss-crossing across the walkway to try and see all the games and rides the park had to offer. They nearly bubbled over with glee, laughing and chattering excitedly. Lucy was half tempted to join in their enthusiasm.

She glanced at Gru, who seemed almost completely unaffected by the wonders around them. She set her brow; Lucy was determined to have fun with him tonight, even if she had to drag him kicking and screaming.

"Aren't you even a _little_ excited?" she asked him, measuring a small imaginary space between her thumb and forefinger. His responding expression was anything but thrilled. ". . . Okay, maybe not. So, maybe this isn't your ideal night, but hey, at least you're making the kids happy!" she offered. Gru glanced from her to the girls, letting a minute smile slowly cross his face at the way they danced about. Inwardly she celebrated – each time she could pull him from one of his stormy moods was a success in her book. This was a good sign. "That's the spirit," she encouraged. "Now, let's get this started!" She helped Gru herd the kids together, standing before them and clapping her hands together with a grin.

"Okay girls, what's first?" she asked. They lit up, each yelling a different suggestion.

"Face painting!"

"Roller coaster!"

"Games!"

Lucy paused, wanting a plan that would both keep the girls happy and let her make the most of her time with Gru. "Hmm, how about this? Let's do the roller coaster first and then we'll hit the booths. Sound good?" The girls nodded and took off through the crowd to get in line.

"Woah, woah, hold the horses!" Gru exclaimed.

"What's wrong?"

"I am not riding another one of dose things again," he said. "You go with the gurls, I will be porfectly fine standing here and watching."

"You don't like roller coasters?" she asked with a snort.

"What? Why is dat funny?"

"No, it's nothing," she goaded, "it's just I didn't know you got _scared_ of stuff like that."

". . ."

He realized letting Lucy get the best of him and his pride was a mistake the second they reached the top of the first hill. To his credit, he only screamed half the time.

As they came to a rattling stop, Gru stumbled from the coaster with a hand clapped over his mouth, cursing his weak stomach. Lucy hopped out of her cart and came rushing by along with the girls, her hair a wind-whipped mess. She wrapped her arm around his and beamed brightly with the exhilaration.

"That was awesome!" she exclaimed.

Gru hiccupped, struggling to keep the rapidly spinning world upright. "Oh yes," he groaned, "that was absolutely _wonderful_."

"Let's do that again!" Edith cheered.

Another defeated groan from Gru convinced Lucy they shouldn't. A sick Gru did not factor into her plans very well. "Um, how about you go look at the booths instead?" she suggested. "That way you girls can play some games and grab some chow."

"Ooh, let's go see if we can find the one that Daddy blew up last time we were here!" Agnes cried.

Lucy arched a brow. "'Blew up'?"

Gru, seemingly recovered from his bout of dizziness, smirked before handing each of the girls some cash and shooing them off. "Go on gurls, go play." Not needing anymore encouragement, they sped off into the crowd, bickering over which game they would play first. "And steeck together!" he hollered.

"Do I even want to know?" Lucy asked, though her curious smile said she did.

The pair fell into step with one another, moving along with the crowd, hand-in-hand. Gru had to lean closer to her to even be heard over the surrounding conversation – not that she minded, of course. "Remember Agnes' favorite uneecorn toy?" he asked. "Dat's how I got it for her. Cheap carnies are obnoxious anyway, so blowing up the booth was only a small collateral damage."

"That is probably the coolest thing a dad's ever done for his kid," she laughed. "You think you could win me something like that, too?"

"Would you like me to?" he asked. He looked around, as if searching for the best booth nearby to play for.

"Oh, no!" she protested, shaking her head. "No, I was only kidding!" But it seemed as if Gru was determined to do so, as he found one booth in particular, nodded firmly, and pulled her along with him through the crowd. She laughed, tugging backward against him half-heartedly. "Gru!" she giggled.

They emerged from the crowd to come across a simple red and white striped booth. The banner hanging from the top proclaimed "Bottle Toss", and inside featured a simple set up of a table, on which stood a pyramid of glass milk bottles and a bucket of rubber balls. On the back wall was a display of prizes, ranging from a piece of candy to massive stuffed animals. Despite her protesting, Lucy felt a small spark of happiness at the idea of Gru trying to win her something.

He and Lucy approached the counter, where a pleasant looking middle-aged man stood. "Afternoon, folks!" the carnie said, gearing up into his sales pitch. "Interested in a playing? Five dollars will buy you three rounds. The rules are simple, the game's easy, and who knows, maybe you might win something for the pretty lady! So, what'll it be, fella?"

Gru fished five dollars from his wallet and set it on the counter. The carnie grinned, pocketing the cash and going back to fetch the bucket.

Lucy touched his shoulder hesitantly, leaning closer so no one else might hear. "Wait, Gru, you're not actually going to blow this one up too, are you?" she whispered nervously.

Gru chuckled, shaking his head. "No, of course not - I left my solar cannon in the car, so I do not have the proper weaponry to destroy it."

Lucy blinked, a surprised laugh bubbling up from her chest. She forgot how odd they truly were sometimes until moments like this. "And you do know these things are generally rigged, right?"

"Yes, I am well aware. However, it will not be a problem," he said, a hint of mystery to his voice.

"Well, alright then," she grinned, "go for it, hun."

The man returned, bucket in hand. He set out three balls across the counter, and then motioned Gru forward. "Okay, rules of the game are you get three rounds, three balls per round," he said, counting out three fingers on each hand as he went. "You knock down all the bottles in one round, you get first prize. Think you got it?"

"Got it." Gru picked up a ball, eyeing it quickly before focusing on the stack of milk bottles. Winding back one long arm, he threw the ball with suprising speed. . . and missed. Lucy winced, making a disheartened noise.

"Close one, sweetheart."

Gru didn't seem fazed by the loss, but only moved on to the next ball, picking it up and seeming to rethink the best way to go about throwing it. If she didn't know better, with the way she could see the gears of his mind turning she'd think he was working the physics of the game out in his head. Suddenly, his eyes sparked, as if realizing something. Smiling in that self-assured, almost cocky way that Lucy had learned to recognize over time as his, 'I've got this', look, Gru turned and lobbed the ball. It whipped across the dozen feet of open air, crashing into the bottles with force and toppling them all from the table and clear off the opposite edge.

Both Lucy and the carnie had the same bewildered expression on their faces. Lucy, because she couldn't believe he actually won; the carnie, because no one had won his rigged game in over a year.

"I believe dat means I win furst prize, yes?" Gru asked.

* * *

The pair left the booth five minutes later, Lucy clutching a giant stuffed lion and Gru with his arm wrapped around her waist. The two walked between the rows of booths, searching for the next thing to catch their fancy. Lucy was grinning like a fool, nearly giddy with the results of the night so far. She'd never expected to have this much fun, or for Gru to be so into it despite his complaining. She could barely wait to see what the rest of the night had in store.

"How did you do that back there?" she asked curiously. "I thought for sure those games were rigged to be near impossible to win."

"Simple - once you understand the physics of how to best break the superglue bonds dat hold the bottles together to the table, den it is only a matter of throwing the ball at the right angle and speed," he explained. "I only needed to determine which glue he used to feegure it out. Dere is always a way to beat a rigged game." She could tell he enjoyed flaunting his intelligence to impress her, and so far, it was working. She was just glad his recent bout of destruction had loosened him up - he seemed to finally be having a good time.

"So, still think this is the worst place ever," she asked, "or has the carnival worked its magic on you yet?"

Gru pretended to heave a long-suffering sigh. "Dis is steell a horrid place," he decided. "However, I am having a surprisingly good time. I theenk it must be the company I'm keeping." He smiled at her, warm and affectionate.

She closed the gap between them, planting a peck on his lips. "Good," she replied, lingering closely, "because you're not getting rid of me anytime soon, hun." Gru paused and tugged lightly on her arm to get her to follow suit. He drew closer, briefly touching her wild hair between his fingertips. Lucy felt the color rush to her cheeks at the guesture. He noticed, and smirked.

"Are you sure about dat?" he teased. "You might regret dat decision later."

She dared to move even closer, excitement tingling like electricity in her body. There was a sudden, palpable tension in the air. "I'm afraid it's true," she replied. "If you want me gone you're gonna have to try harder than that."

Then, he ducked his head to steal a second kiss, apparently no longer satisfied with just one. This was no peck, though, but a more profound expression of longing, escalating farther and farther as the seconds passed. Lucy suddenly wished she had somewhere to put her prize down without ruining it so that she could use both hands to properly clutch at him. His hands stole to her hips, holding her firmly and almost possessively in his grip. She was barely aware of her arms winding around his neck, focused instead entirely on the warm press of his lips against hers. She felt her face flush, acutely aware but somehow not caring that she and Gru were making out like total teenagers. Thankfully, they were still tucked away within the maze of booths, caught in the grassy pathway between three catty-corner tents, so no passerby's were likely to walk by and spoil the moment. They must have looked ridiculous, two fully grown adults wrapped around each other like this, but who was there to tell? She wasn't even quite sure what caused all this, but she wasn't going to complain.

Once again, Lucy's butterflies returned full force, swarming around her stomach and migrating to her fingers and toes. She was dizzy with the sensation. She and Gru were completely caught up in each other, torn with the give and pull of emotion. They were no strangers to this feeling - in fact, many late nights and subsequent early mornings were spent in the same manner - but each time felt brand new, a raw spark of desperation fanned into flames. Somewhere in her mind she vaguely wished they were anywhere but in public.

They broke apart, flushed and breathless. Lucy realized belatedly, despite her best efforts, her stuffed lion ended up on the grass anyway. Somehow, that seemed less important. They continued to cling to each other, not yet willing to let go of their life lines. "Whoa," she murmured. "Wh-where did that come from?"

He gazed at her, his expression nearly unreadable, but a warm, burning look in his eyes. It was akin to the affectionate looks he often graced her with, but somehow far, far beyond that simplicity. She struggled to understand it, knowing that it was meant for her and only her, but not quite comprehending what it was. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak a single word, they both heard a tiny voice ring out, calling, "Gru?"

They blanched, recognizing the voice instantly.

"Agnes," Gru said, glancing in the direction of the sound. He looked back at Lucy and coughed, stammering sheepishly. "Sh-She must be looking for us."

Inwardly, Lucy cursed the little girl's timing. She needed to know what on earth inspired that bout of passion from him and why. But instead she nodded, carefully extricating her arms from the tangles in his scarf and from around his neck as he removed his warm hold on her hips. They took a few moments, straightening out rustled clothes and mussed hair quietly, both almost afraid to look at each other lest they reignite the tension still heavy between them. Silently, Gru took her hand and led her from the booths out to the boardwalk to find his daughter standing a few feet away, looking around for them.

"Agnes, keetten, what are you doing by yourself?" he asked worriedly." Where are your seesters?"

The child turned, lighting up when she saw the couple. "Daddy!" She scampered forward, climbing up his side with a practiced ease. He caught, holding her in his free arm. "Margo and Edith went to go get food, but I'm not hungry, so I went to find you."

"I told you to stay with your seesters," he scolded lightly. "You could have gotten lost or stolen in dat huge crowd, and I wouldn't know where you went!" Agnes looked away, her bubbly spirit slightly put out by the correction. She mumbled something that sounded like 'sorry', and Gru sighed. "It is alright," he assured her," just don't do dat again, okay?" A nod from her was all the answer he needed. Suddenly, she dropped her pout and let out a loud squeal, squirming and pointing at something excitedly. Gru winced, holding her at arm's distance from him by her overall straps. "Oh my gosh," she yelled, "look at the big fluffy lion!"

Lucy grinned, holding it up so Agnes could get a better look. "Yep, your dad won it for me at a carnival game!" The child pet the puffy mane with wonder in her eyes. Lucy watcher her, melting once more under Agnes' simplistic happiness. "You know what," she said. "I think I need someone to hold him 'til I get home. He's getting awfully heavy." She caught eyes with Gru and winked. He smiled gratefully at her. "Agnes, do you know someone who would like to hold him for me?"

"Ooh, ooh, I would Lucy!" Agnes said eagerly. "Can I hold him for you? Please?"

"Alright," she consented, smiling warmly at the little girl. "But only if you promise to take good care of him." She handed the stuffed animal into Agnes' anxiously waiting arms. Agnes squished it in a tight hug.

"I promise!" she replied happily. "You're the best mommy ever, Lucy!"

She froze, her gut sinking at Agnes' words. Part of her was elated to hear Agnes call her mom. She loved the girls so much, and they had stolen a special place in her heart, right alongside Gru. But the other part of her was firm in knowing that it was cruel for any of them to entertain that idea. She wasn't their mother, and she might never be. For all she knew, the girls still loved their birth mothers, and who was she to take their places? Perhaps it was better to not even think of it, rather than be hurt in the end. Still, unbidden warmth blossomed in her stomach, as she wished horribly that somehow Agnes' sentiment was true.

Slowly, she looked at Gru, whose expression was halfway between distraught and what she could have sworn looked like sadness. He tucked his daughter closer to his chest, hesitating for a moment to search desperately for the right thing to say to correct her.

"Ah, A-Agnes, sweetheart . . . Lucy isn't – "

"Gru." Lucy interrupted him, placing her hand softly on his chest. "It's okay, I've got it." Gru watched her for a moment. He seemed absolutely agonized over the situation, torn between what he should and shouldn't do, what was true and what wasn't. Slowly, he nodded, and set Agnes back down on the ground. Lucy knelt to her level, forcing a cheery smile on her face. "Hey, sweetie, how about you and me go talk for a bit, okay?"

The little girl, oblivious to her mistake, only nodded. Lucy stood, taking her little hand and leading them away to a nearby bench. She sat first, then picked Agnes up and placed her in her lap. She fiddled idly with the girl's ponytail for a moment, wondering where on earth she could begin. Agnes played with the stuffed lion, grabbing handfuls of its mane and attempting to braid it. Lucy took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. She knew exactly what she needed to do.

"Agnes? Could you look at me for a second?" she asked gently. "I want to tell you something." Agnes looked up, the lion temporarily forgotten in lieu of her favorite red-headed agent. "You know I love you and your sisters, right?" Agnes nodded, smiling. Lucy continued, "And you know that will never change, no matter what? No matter who you are or who I am, that I will always care about you?"

"Uh-huh," she replied.

"Good," Lucy said, dreading what came next, "because what I wanted to tell you was that even though I love you, and even though we are very close, I-I'm not your mommy."

Agnes' eyebrows furrowed as a confused and slightly hurt look overcame her features. "But, you act like a mommy," she insisted. "You kiss my boo-boo's and brush my hair, like the Mothers Day song says."

"I know, sweetie," Lucy said, brushing Agnes' hair back fondly. "And I love doing those things. But just because I do them doesn't make me a mommy."

Agnes squirmed, shifting around in her lap to look up at her. "Then what does?"

Lucy smiled slightly. "Well, for me to really be your mom, your dad and I would have to get married."

"Okay, so get married then!" Agnes said, as if it were the simplest thing on earth.

Lucy laughed, surprised by her naïve bluntness. "That's not up to me, hun. It's something that both your dad and I have to agree on."

"Well, Daddy wants to!" she exclaimed, "I know he does!"

Lucy ignored the excited flutter of her heart and continued on. "How do you know that?"

"He loves you!" she replied with a wide smile. "I know cause he told me so. He always talks about you, Lucy. He likes lots of things about you, like your hair and your laugh and your eyes, and how crazy you are, and a whole buncha other things I can't remember. But he told me, honest!"

Lucy had to fight back the brilliant smile threatening to break across her face. Gru loved her . . . he loved her! The little girl in her lap kept talking, but the noise was temporarily pushed to the back of her mind in the face of this revelation. He _loved_ her! If she felt giddy and excited before, nothing in the world could compare to this feeling. She'd known he loved her, knew it in her heart, just as surely as she loved him from the first moment she met him. They had never said it aloud to each other - not in so many words, at least - but they proved it to each other every day, hidden in the way they looked at each other, in they way they touched. But to finally hear it, and know it was true . . . She felt as if her heart might lift right out of her ribcage and fly away, so feather-light and burgeoning with hope. _Gru loved her! _She stole a quick glance at him, unable to keep from grinning when she saw him. He was idly pacing back and forth along a stretch of walkway, hands folded behind his back, a worried and pensive look on his face. One glimpse of him brought back all the tension and emotion they shared just ten minutes before, locked within each other's embrace in the intimacy of privacy. Her new knowledge made the memory that much sweeter. Shaking herself, she forced her attention back to the child in her lap, who was still happily chattering away.

" - so if you and Daddy have to get married, and you love each other, then why doesn't he just ask you?"

Lucy laughed, leaning down and gathering her in a warm hug. "That's a good question! I don't know, Agnes," she whispered secretively. "But how about you ask him later?" Agnes giggled and nodded, wrapping her little arms around Lucy's neck. "So, is everything okay then, munchkin?" Lucy asked.

"Mhm! Even if you're not my mommy yet, you're still the nicest lady ever!" Agnes hugged even tighter, nearly hanging from Lucy's shoulders. "I'm glad you met my daddy."

Lucy picked her up, standing from the bench and looking at Gru once more. "I am too, sweetheart. I am too."

Gru watched apprehensively as Lucy walked back, setting Agnes down at their feet. He seemed surprised at his daughter's happy state, and watched as she continued to fuss over the stuffed lion. "Go on and find your sisters, Agnes," Lucy told her. "Me and your dad are going to talk a bit." Agnes obliged, toddling off cheerily with the lion in tow.

Gru watched before turning to Lucy, brow raised. "Dat seems like it went well. What happened?"

"Agnes and I talked," she said, "and I handled it. She's okay, and she understands now that I'm not her mom."

He sighed. "Good." He looked away, turning sheepish again as he broached the sensitive subject. "I'm sorry if dat made you uncomfortable. I don't know where in the wurld she got the idea dat you were her mother." He glanced up at her apologetically.

"Don't worry about it, sweetheart," she said kindly. "I'm not bothered by it. She's just a kid, and sometimes they don't know any better."

He smiled slightly, glad for her understanding. She was about to continue when she glanced above his shoulder and paused. An excited smile crossed her face, and she looked like a child on Christmas morning. Gru frowned, confused, before he turned and followed her line of vision. Standing in the near distance at the end of the boardwalk was a massive Ferris Wheel, towering overhead and blinking with cheerful colors. It spun slowly, each bucket perched delicately on the outer rim.

Gru felt her hands close around his, and she swung into his vision, walking backward and pulling him along with her toward the ride. "Come on Gru, let's go on the Ferris Wheel! One ride before the night ends, just the two of us. What do you say?"

Gru chuckled at her enthusiasm, allowing her to tug him beside her. "Okay, dat's fine," he agreed. "Anything dat makes you dis happy is worth trying." She hugged him briefly before nearly skipping ahead the short distance to the entrance line. Thankfully for them, the line was short, only about ten other people, so the wait was short. "You really like deese things, don't you?" Gru laughed.

"I haven't been on one since I was a kid!" she exclaimed. "Haven't you ever ridden one before?"

"Not dat I can recall, no," he replied. Normally, Gru couldn't care less about fair rides, but her passion made him eager to experience this with her for the first time. He found that he wanted to do most everything with her these days, as if her presence was essential to living his life.

The two handed the attendant their tickets and climbed into a bucket, closing the door and taking seats opposite each other. The ride hummed to life, gaining momentum as it spun and lifted them into the air. Lucy giggled, reaching across the small space between their knees and gripping his hands. He smiled, despite the ridiculousness of it all. Slowly, they rose higher and higher toward the wheel's apex, until the entire city was sprawled out beneath them. Gru looked out across the view, speechless from the beauty of the nightscape. A waxing crescent moon hung crookedly in the sky, spilling pale white light across the rolling clouds dotting the atmosphere. Fog was rolling inland, blanketing the city in a thick opaque sheet. Lights like sequins pierced the veil, appearing as golden and silver clusters. The amusement park lay beneath them, an amalgamation of blurred color and movement. Behind them laid the ocean, as deep and black as the night sky, the water rocking and receding softly against the rocks like velvet over jagged teeth.

Pulling himself from the stunning view, he turned to look at Lucy, wanting to share the moment with her. What he found was even more beautiful to him than the landscape they floated above. The moonlight spilled across her skin, silhouetting her against the stark night sky. The soft fluorescent carnival lights beneath them danced across her skin and hair, setting her aglow with a myriad of colors. Her eyes danced with wonder at what they saw, and her lips were barely parted as if she wanted to speak but couldn't find the words.

Her eyes flickered toward him, and paused, lingering there. She never knew a person could be worshiped, but at that moment, there was such reverence in his eyes it took her breath away. She found herself blushing – and thanking the cover of night for effectively hiding her reaction.

"Gru?" she asked tentatively.

"You are beautiful," he said softly. She ducked her head, smiling shyly. The soft affection he was showing her reminded her once again of their brief, shared moment earlier that night, and the revelations that followed. Agnes' words echoed through her head. _He loves me,_ Lucy thought.

Gru's fingers on her cheek pulled her back to the present. He guided her to look at him, his eyes curious. "What are you theenking of?" he asked.

She leaned into his touch. "Of how much I love it up here. With you." The wheel began its descent, carrying them down toward earth once more. She took his hand from her face, slipping her fingers between his and observing with interest the way they seemed to fit together so well. "And of some of the things Agnes and I talked about."

"Like what?"

"She told me she thought that how I take care of her and her sisters makes me their mother - she said it had something to do with a Mother's Day song."

"Ahh," Gru hummed in understanding. "You mean like keessing her boo-boo's and brushing her hair?"

"Exactly," she nodded.

"All of dat happened just before I met you. Agnes had a part in the Mother's Day pageant, but she deedn't know what it was like to have a mother, so she was afraid she wouldn't be able to do it right."

"You mean she - ?"

"She was too young to remember her parents when dey gave her up for adoption," Gru said, "so she gathered what she could from the play. I guess dat's what she theenks having a mother means."

"That's terrible," she said sorrowfully. Her heart sank for the child, not able to comprehend how it must feel to not even remember her birth parents. Agnes was fortunate, though, to end up with a father as wonderful as Gru. If anyone deserved as much love and care in the world, it was those three girls. She knew she could help provide it, but she also knew it wasn't her place to take over any sort of role. "They deserve a mother," she said, "someone to care for them as deeply as you do."

"I am trying the best dat I can by myself to make dem feel happy and loved," he confessed, "but sometimes I wurry dat it is not enough."

Lucy backpedaled furiously, realizing what she might have implied. "Oh no, Gru, that's not what I meant! You do such a good job as a father and a single parent, and those girls love you so much. I just - " She wrung her hands together, looking to the side nervously. Her next words came out in a rush, as if she were scared that if she didn't say them right away, they might never come out. "I just wish sometimes that I could be there for the girls more! Agnes told me that I make a good mother and that made me realize that I _love _taking care of them, and how they've become such a big part of my life just like you have, and then I think maybe I could be their mother because they need that extra support and love and then I realize how _silly_ that is because I couldn't be their mother because we're not married but still I just wish - " Gru's fingers against her lips halted her speech before curling underneath her jaw and guiding her to look at him. She was hesitant, afraid of the reaction she might find in his face. Her eyes met his, and to her relieved suprise she found warmth and understanding, along with a hint of that burning emotion she had yet to put a name to.

"Lucy," he murmured gently. "I theenk you would make a wonderful mother. And the gurls would be so, so lucky to have you."

She smiled tearfully, her hands gripping his outstretched forearm. She tried not to think about everything his words implied, but couldn't stop the overwhelming gratitude and love she had for him from bubbling to the surface. They were immersed again in moonlight, the wheel having come full turn and bringing them right back to the top. All the world lay stretched out before them. Suddenly, just as they reached the top of the rotation, the Ferris Wheel came to a shuddering halt. Confused, Lucy broke away from Gru momentarily to look down. There, several dozen feet below, sat the control box. Bright arcs of electricity sprung from it for a few seconds before giving way to sparks and smoke. The ride attendant rushed over, visibly baffled by the random occurrence. She could hear the other patrons begin to complain and demand to know why they'd stopped. Lucy raised a brow, bringing her head back around to stare at Gru questioningly.

"You didn't . . ." she trailed off.

"There may or may not have been a pre-programmed malfunction planted in the ride's control system before we got on," he said innocently, though the mischievous gleam in his eyes spoke otherwise. "It may have been programmed to stop at the top for oh, say, twenty or thirty minutes before it allows the normal programming to regain control. I, however, know absolutely notheeng about it. I don't know why you would even accuse me of such a thing."

She regarding him with wide, disbelieving eyes before breaking down into laughter. "Gru, that is the sweetest and most diabolical thing anyone's ever done for me," she said. "Thank you." He grinned, pleased with the results of his sabotage. Suddenly, Lucy stood up and switched seats, moving to sit next to Gru instead of across from him. She promptly nestled into his side, smiling when he wrapped his arm around her and tugged her closer. He pressed a kiss into her hair, then one to her temple. Together, the pair gazed out across the view, taking in all the beauty the world offered them.

"You know," Lucy said, a sing-song tone to her voice, "Agnes told me some other stuff too. Some pretty interesting stuff, if you ask me."

He groaned, pleading, "Please tell me dis is nothing like the time you met my mother."

She giggled at the memory and pat his arm reassuringly. "No, though that was absolutely hilarious. This was something more . . . secret. Something that you told her." He furrowed his brow, not getting her hint. "Something secret you told her about _me_."

"But I deedn't - oh." He froze, his cheeks reddening by the second. "_O-Ohhh._" She looked up at him, enjoying every second of his nervous stammering. "Well, I-I deedn't - I hope y-you don't . . . she deedn't say anything else did she? B-Because I know dis is still - dat we are still - "

Now it was her turn to silence him. She shifted, grabbing the lapels of his jacket and pulling him down, crashing her lips to his and effectively ending his flustered rambling. He made a muffled noise of shock, and she pulled back just as quickly as she started, a grin slanted across her face.

"Guess what? I love you too, _partner_."

His suprised expression melted into one of happiness and relief. "Y-You do?"

"Absolutely."

That look sparked again in his eyes, and Lucy was finally able to recognize it for what it always had been - it was love. Every time looked at her, he looked at her with love. The realization made her heart swell, and she couldn't keep herself from pulling him back down for another kiss. He responded, wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her firmly to him. He met her with equal frenzy, as if he were a drowning man and she was his air. Now that he knew for a fact that she loved him, truly _loved_ him, he didn't think he could ever let her go. Lucy slid a hand from his lapel to the back of his neck, grabbing and drawing him deeper into the kiss. Her other hand clutched at his jacket like he was her anchor to the world and without him, she would simply float away. She inwardly prayed that the Ferris Wheel would never come back down, because she was perfectly content staying like this forever.

Unfortunately, the need to breathe took primary concern after a few long minutes, forcing them to part. They both gasped for air, silly, lovestruck grins on their faces. Gru reached up a hand and brushed her mussed hair back from her face, fingertips lingering fondly.

"Well, you'll really have a hard time getting rid of me now," Lucy whispered, her eyes full of mischief. "Seems like once you're in love, you're stuck. Too bad for you, sweetheart."

He chuckled darkly. "You know, I theenk I can find a way to manage. Just promise me one thing?"

Already, she was being drawn back into him. "Mm?"

"Stay with me."

She grinned. "Already done."

The pair melded back together, where they stayed for the remainder of their stolen time, moonlight washing over them and the world at their feet. Together, it seemed, they could have anything.

* * *

**Okay, so this was originally supposed to be a short, cute fic of Gru winning Lucy a stuffed animal at the fair, but then it came out like this. As you can probably tell, that happens**** to me**** a lot, lol.**

**I'd like to think that Lucy and Gru, as in love as they are, were both incredibly shy when it comes to saying it for the first time - Gru more so than Lucy. They both hadn't dated in so long, and when they did, it usually ended in disaster. So when they find each other and start dating, both are instantly head over heels, but maybe they don't voice it right away because not that much time had passed and they don't want to scare the other away.**

**I also have this cute idea that ****Agnes**** starts to consider Lucy her mom before she and Gru ever get married because she just _knows _it's going to happen sooner or later. On the sadder side of that idea is that Lucy is the first positive female role model in her life, so she's not quite sure what qualifies as a mother and what doesn't. But she knows that if anyone could be her mother, she would pick Lucy.**

**I've noticed a bad habit of mine in these fics is changing Gru's accent pattern over each chapter. I'm sorry if it's bothered yall, and I'll definitely try to keep it more consistent over future chapters.**

**Anyway, I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank yall again for all of your reviews and support! It makes me so happy to hear what yall think of my writing! Okay, so I won't say too much about this chapter because I don't want to ruin the suprise, but this is one a lot of yall have been asking for.**

**Ramsbottom calls Gru and Lucy in on a mission to stop a supervillain, ruining yet another date night. This chapter is set two years into Gru and Lucy's dating period. I hope yall enjoy! Review, please!**

**((Update: Edited for writer error and screwed up timelines))**

* * *

Lucy should've known better than to think their date night would go uninterrupted. It was always one thing or another that forced them to cancel their plans - namely, the AVL. Looking back on it, quite a few date nights had been ruined by the AVL during the two years she and Gru have been seeing each other. It was as if Ramsbottom knew exactly when they made plans, and swooped down with mission work right before just to spite them. Which wouldn't surprise her, honestly – dating between agents in the League was a big taboo, but when it involved his two best operatives, well, that was an entirely different story.

This time around, they were being sent to what was rumored to be the warehouse of the infamous villain Hijack, a mastermind at all things technological. Information told them that Hijack was developing a virus to hack into and take over every major satellite in the world. From there, he would ransom the different world powers for the return of the satellites, in the mean time broadcasting his own programming – some of which included hours and hours of him monologuing about his greatness, while others involved topics of greater severity, such as top-secret data, military movements, and base coordinates. Lucy had never dealt with Hijack before, but Gru was very familiar with his work. He had what Gru called the 'whole deel', meaning he was smart, he was strong, he was driven, and he was ruthless. Far from the typical basement nerd sending out email viruses, Hijack was a heavy player. He had connections to nearly every corner of the villain network, and often contracted out his skills to whoever had the money to pay him. Gru worked with him once, helping him break into a heavily guarded technological development firm to steal parts for his latest invention. In return, Hijack developed software to allow Gru to hack into major data streams, allowing him such conveniences as using GPS to locate his next targets, or accessing someone's personal identity information.

It was six in the afternoon when the call came. Lucy had been freshening her make-up and putting on a dress for the night. She and Gru had made reservations at one of the ritzier joints in town to celebrate Lucy's promotion to Top Agent in the Villain Reconnaissance sector. Gru was downstairs making sure the girls had everything they needed to be taken care of for the rest of the night. He had assigned several minions to the task of watching over them and getting them to bed on time – not without severe threats for if anything should happen to the girls while they were out, of course. Lucy was just putting in her earrings when her cellphone began to cheerily play her ringtone, a clip from the song 'Secret Agent Man'. She snatched it from the countertop and answered it, cradling it between her shoulder and ear to free up her hands.

"Lucy Wilde here," she chirped, rifling through the drawer to find a lipstick that didn't serve as a secondary weapon.

"Agent Wilde, good evening," said a familiar British voice.

"Ramsbottom? What are you calling me for, you know it's my day off – " She paused, deflating. She had a feeling she knew exactly what this was about. "Oh, no. Don't tell me."

"I'm afraid so, Ms. Wilde," he replied, not sounding apologetic in the least. "We have a mission for you."

"No no no, absolutely not!" she said agitatedly, placing her hand on her hip. "There is no way that you are ruining another one of my date nights! This has got to be like at least the tenth time you've called on our night off!"

"While this is true, Ms. Wilde, you know that evil never sleeps, so neither do we."

"You know, I'm sure I would get plenty of sleep if you would just stop calling me in!" she exclaimed.

"Agent Wilde, I would watch your tone," Ramsbottom warned. "You may have gotten a promotion, but it can be revoked just as quickly."

Lucy closed her eyes and placed a hand on her forehead, heaving a sigh. She counted to five before opening her eyes again, feeling significantly calmer, if still a bit annoyed. "Sorry, sir. So, let's hear it. What's the mission?"

* * *

Gru had been even angrier than she was at the news, launching into a rant and pacing the floor in frustration. "Again? Dey called _again_?" he exclaimed, gesturing wildly. "What makes dem theenk we will just drop everytheeng on our night off to go on some reediculous mission?" He threw his arms up with a growl, clenching his fists. "Do they know how long it took me to get dose reservations? Dey have other agents too, you know!"

Lucy sat on their bed, still dressed to the nines, watching him walk back and forth. "Believe me, sweetheart, I'm just as angry as you are, but we don't have a choice on this one. Ramsbottom said we have to go."

"Ugh! You see, dis is why I was a villain! You don't have to follow directions from a Goats-Butt."

She chuckled at the name-calling, before standing and crossing to him. "Maybe so, but you're a good guy now," she said, placing her hand on his shoulder, "and good guys have to do the right thing to save the world, even if it means giving up what they want. And who knows, maybe we can move the dinner reservations for later this week instead." Just for good measure, she kissed his cheek, hoping to smooth over his ruffled feathers.

He sighed exasperatedly, rolling his eyes and nodding. "Yeah, yeah, okay. I steell don't like it, though. So, where is dis place anyway?"

* * *

That's how she and Gru found themselves in a warehouse in the middle of nowhere, stuck in a small backroom on the second story with a barred window and a single, locked door, while an entire building blazed around them.

The inferno roared at a deafening level, crackling and spitting as it slowly consumed the first floor and inched its way up the building. The temperature in the room was skyrocketing by the minute, already at an almost unbearable level. The elevated heat certainly did no favors for the agents' composition, adding a high-strung tension to the fear and claustrophobia closing in around them.

"A fire?" Lucy exclaimed. "Are you kidding me? You really just _had_ to go and set the place on fire, didn't you?"

Gru turned from his attempts at prying open the door and glared at her. "Not on purpose! How was I supposed to know Hijack's mainframes were programmed to self-detonate if dey were tampered weeth? Besides, you were supposed to be taking out the security system," he said, pointing a long finger at her. "We wouldn't have been caught if dey couldn't find us!"

She opened her mouth to retort, but any words she might have said were drowned out by the horrible sound of wrenching metal followed by the deafening cacophony of a portion of the building collapsing somewhere nearby. The pair both covered their ears, grimacing from the sheer power of the noise. The floor beneath them began to shudder with the stress, threatening to give way any second. Finally, the noise died down and the tremors stopped, leaving behind an odd sort of silence in its wake. Gru and Lucy glanced at each other, worry written clear across their faces. Silently, they both realized that death could be just around the corner, and spending their precious time bickering instead of trying to escape would serve no purpose but speeding up the process.

"Okay, you know what," Lucy said, throwing her arms across her body, "forget the mainframes, forget the security. This building is coming down, and I don't want to be in it when it does. We need to get out of here, now."

Gru nodded. "You're right." He turned, marching across to the window and examining the bars for tension points. A silent moment passed before he spoke again. "I-I'm sorry, for blaming you. It was not your fault."

She came up beside him, wrapping her hands around the bars and pulling with all her might. When nothing budged, she sagged, panting. "No, I'm sorry. I was the one who agreed to the mission tonight instead of just telling Ramsbottom to shove it." She looked at him apologetically, regret in her eyes. "I mean, we could be having a candlelit dinner right now, but instead we're stuck in a burning building with no way out." She gave a tired, sarcastic chuckle. "So much for celebrating, huh?"

Gru abandoned his work with the window and turned to her, tutting and shaking his head. "No, no. You are not blaming yourself for dis." He cupped her jaw and ran a thumb over her cheekbone affectionately. "Like you said, good guys have to sacreefice sometimes to save the wurld, right?"

She smirked, leaning into his palm. "True. But next time, let's just stay in, okay? The world can wait."

He grinned. "Deel."

The building suddenly gave a sickening lurch, throwing the two agents to the ground roughly. They looked up in time to see flames begin to consume the door, seeping through the cracks and licking at the ceiling. Lucy knew that it wouldn't be too much longer until the flames overtook the entire room. The building continued to tremor with aftershocks, making it nearly impossible for them to get to their feet. Using each other to pull themselves up, they staggered to the window. One glance outside showed the fire rapidly advancing to the second floor, overtaking entire portions of wall each second.

Lucy gripped his shoulder tightly, trying to gather her thoughts into something coherent. "Oookay," she said. "The door's gone, so the window's our only way out. Or, it would be, if it didn't have bars on it." She turned to him. "Any ideas on how to get out of here?"

Gru racked his brain, only coming up with one solution, and it wasn't one he particularly liked.

"I have an idea, but it isn't very good and it might just make theengs even worse."

"Gru, we're locked in a burning building with no way out," she exclaimed. "I really don't see how it could get any worse than this. What is it?"

He pulled down the zipper of his coat, reaching inside and pulling out a long gun with a peculiar hollow dome affixed to the barrel. He held it out for Lucy to see, and her mouth dropped open. "Are you serious?" she cried. "You had a weapon this _whole_ time and you didn't use it?!"

"With good reason," he snapped. "Dis is a pulse gun. It's made to deestabilize the atomic construct of a target weeth controlled bursts of energy fields, essentially destroying it."

"So? That sounds pretty useful in this situation!" She gestured wildly to the window. "Shoot it!"

"You're not leestening!" he exclaimed. "The building's structure is already unstable. If I used dis to shoot out the window, it could destabilize it even further, enough dat the entire building could collapse down on us. Dat's why I deedn't consider it an option until now," he said solemnly. "If I use dis . . . we could die."

She froze, biting her lip and glancing nervously between the pulse gun and the window. "How much of a chance would we have of surviving?" she asked.

Gru paused, doing the math in his head quickly. "At the rate the building is burning, I'd say we have a sixty percent chance of living."

"Okay, good enough for me!" Lucy said brightly, grabbing Gru's hand to move back to a safe enough target range distance.

"Wait, what?" He stopped her, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Are you sure about dis? Sixty percent chance of survival means dat there's still a forty percent chance dat we weell die."

"Yeah, but if we stay in here we don't stand a chance at all." She reached up, clasping her hands over his. "I'm willing to take that risk. Sixty percent chance says we'll live to see the girls another day, to fight on another mission, to make up those dinner reservations." She smiled fondly. "Sixty percent chance says I get to be with you. I'll take those odds."

Gru looked at her, speechless for a moment. "O-Okay den." She smiled, letting go of his hands and moving to turn before he stopped her again. "Wait!"

She furrowed her brow at him. "What is it? We have to hurry."

He looked hesitant, as if he was struggling with himself. Inhaling a shaky breath, he grabbed her hands. "L-Lucy, just in case we don't make it, I-I need to ask you sometheeng!" He spoke hurriedly with a desperate insistence in his voice, odd even for the current situation.

Then, to her complete surprise, he dropped down to one knee and said something she never would have fathomed: "Lucy, will you marry me?"

Just like that. No ring, no fanfare - just Gru, kneeling on the floor, gazing up at her nervously but with all the love in the world as the fire raged around them. Her hand flew to her mouth in shock, and she gasped out loud. _Marry him? _As she looked down at him, she felt her heart strike up a chorus in her chest, singing with happiness. This wasn't how she ever pictured his proposal going in her daydreams, but somehow, it was absolutely perfect. She knew her answer in a heartbeat; this was the the man who put the moon in the sky, but would steal it back if she were only to ask for it. He was an ex-villain, a wonderful father, and her partner. He loved her, and they shared in that love every day. Now, he was asking her for a lifetime together, and she knew she'd have to be crazy to give that up.

But did it have to be at such an inopportune time? She giggled silently. Leave it to Gru to propose when their lives were in mortal danger. After all, it took being strapped to a rocket on a shark hurtling toward an active volcano for him to gather the courage to ask her out.

Shaking herself from her thoughts, she realized by the slightly panicked look in Gru's eyes that she hadn't answered him yet, and the prolonged silence was only wearing worse on his frayed nerves.

"Honey," she said gently, "I love you, but you _really _need to work on your timing."

His gaze faltered, and he smiled nervously. "So, is dat a no?"

Lucy leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips. She pulled back, touching her forehead to his. "Of course I'll marry you! Now, let's get out of here before we die."

"Right." He stood, grabbing her hand with a grin and aiming the gun at the window. Lucy crossed the fingers of her free hand, praying desperately that fate was in their favor. Besides, with a wedding to plan, a family to take care of, and a whole new life ahead of her, that sixty percent chance was looking so, so much brighter.

* * *

**And there you go! He finally proposed! This fic was actually inspired by skellagirl AKA ask-lucy-wilde on tumblr. They drew an awesome comic about how Gru proposed to Lucy, and I thought it was so perfect that I had to write my proposal fic based off of it. Here's the link, yall should totally go check it out!: (ask - lucy - wilde dot tumblr dot com (/post / 55167743345/ it-was-during-a-heist-that-took-a-turn-for-the) Just take out the spaces and parentheses, and put the dots in the right places.**

**I'm pretty happy with this one, and it actually ended up at about the length I wanted it to. I definitely think that Gru needs a near life-or-death situation to encourage him to make the major decisions. Not all the time, mind you, but I think the threat of dying and never seeing Lucy again would scare him so much that he forces himself to do the things he's normally be very nervous and shy about. And of course Lucy just finds it hilarious, even if his timing is horrible. **

**I don't have a whole lot more to say on this one, but I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you all for the reviews and feedback for the last two chapters! This fandom is seriously the best! Okay, so this is another idea yall have really been asking for - Lucy and the girls. Basically, this will explore ****Lucy's relationship with each girl ****through a simple everyday event. It'll be broken up into three parts, first Agnes, then Edith, and then last will be Margo.**

******(I don't know quite what I'll do for Edith yet, but I have a few ideas. She might be the hardest to do because her relationship with Lucy is harder to read than Agnes' or Margo's.)**  


**These will be set one after the other, progressively later in Gru and Lucy's relationship. This one starts about two months in. I hope you like it! Read and review, please!**

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It was a pleasant, sunny Saturday afternoon, and Lucy had come over to watch the girls while Gru worked on a new invention in the lab. Most of the day, like usual, had been spent playing pretend with Agnes. Her sisters were elsewhere, Margo working on homework and Edith playing ninja with the minions in the backyard. Lucy found herself doing this type of thing more and more often as time passed and she and Gru grew closer in their relationship; many a lazy weekend was spent at his house, playing with the girls, sharing supper, and spending the rest of the evening with him before she dragged herself back home for the night. She never minded though – it gave her time to get to know the girls better, and any day spent with the Gru family was a day well spent. At this point, Lucy looked forward to coming to Gru's house more than she did her own, and she savored the warm welcome she received each time she set foot in the front door. She was fast becoming a fixture in their household, and the realization made her feel fuzzy and warm.

Lucy was also suprised at how quickly she took to caring for the girls, Agnes especially – being the youngest she needed the most attention and supervision. It was like she'd been doing it for years. Not to say that there weren't some difficulties; whenever she was out of her depth, Gru would have to step in and save the day, using whatever magical dad skills he had picked up along that way to make things better. More often than not, though, Lucy could handle whatever the girls could throw her way. She knew to expect bumps along the way though, especially with Margo. Already, the eldest had demonstrated her mistrust of the woman, something that Lucy had yet to be able to handle.

Agnes, though, seemed to have no qualms with the woman. She was by far the easiest and quickest of the girls to become attached to Lucy. Seemingly since the first moment they met, Agnes' trust in her was instant, and it was as if the agent could do no wrong. The girl looked up at her with such adoration and happiness in her eyes, and it never failed to melt Lucy's heart when she would run up to greet her with that excited smile on her face. In fact, one of the first things Agnes did when Lucy started visiting their house was drag her upstairs and show her all of her favorite toys, including her prized unicorn.

Dragging herself from her thoughts, Lucy continued to watch Agnes play with her unicorn toy, a fond smile on her face. The little girl crawled across the floor excitedly, making jet noises and having her stuffed toy 'fly' through the air. Lucy was having difficulty following the stilted storyline of playtime so far, but it had something to do with a magical flying unicorn saving a princess trapped by the overlord of the Gummy Bear Kingdom. Lucy had been relegated to the role of the princess, imprisoned in the fearsome Marshmallow Keep by the Evil Sir Vector Pajamapants. (Lucy had no idea why Agnes would name the evil overlord Vector Pajamapants, but she dismissed it easily – children could have rather _interesting_ imaginations.)

" - and then the unicorn flies down and rescues the princess!" Agnes swooped down, landing the unicorn so that Lucy could put the princess doll on its back.

"But how does she defeat the overlord gummy bear and save the day?" Lucy asked.

"That's easy! She sends him to the moon!" Agnes picked up the Vector Pajamapants gummy bear and tossed it across the room to Kyle, who was napping contently on the floor in a patch of warm sunlight. Lucy watched with a raised brow and amused smile on her lips.

"The moon, of course," she laughed, "why didn't I think of that?"

"'Cause daddy already did," Agnes replied happily.

The comment gave Lucy pause, but before she could dwell on the thought, Agnes had set aside her unicorn toy and scooted up to sit in front of her.

"Lucy?" came her tiny voice.

"What's up munchkin?" the red-head replied, ruffling the girl's hair.

"Are you gonna stay with us?"

"Of course, I always stay late on weekends, you know that."

"No, I mean, are you gonna stay with us forever?"

_Oh. _That certainly came of out left-field. For a moment, she panicked. It was definitely a bold, blunt question, not one that she would've expected Agnes to ask. Of course, the little girl may not have realized the severity of the question – she was still so young and naive. After all, Lucy and Gru had just started dating two months ago – it was far too early for any of those decisions to be made yet. Lucy stared down at the child, not entirely sure how to approach this.

"Um, why are you asking, sweetie?" she asked tentatively.

"Well, you like my daddy, right?"

"Of course I like him, Agnes," she reassured, "I like him very much." And that was the truth. She had never been happier with anyone else.

Agnes nodded, twisting her little fingers together, "Daddy likes you a lot too. I never seen him so happy before, not since he adopted us. He smiles a whole lot now, especially when he talks about you."

Lucy smiled warmly, brushing Agnes' hair back. "Well, I'm glad to hear that."

She grinned childishly. "So, does that mean you'll stay with us then? That way, you can both be happy!"

Lucy frowned, looking away. "W-Well, hun, it's not that simple. Your dad and I have to talk about it together, and even then, that won't happen for a while."

Agnes whined, leaning forward on her knees and planting her hands against Lucy's leg. "Pleeaaase, Lucy? If you stay, I _know _he'll be really happy. But – But if you don't . . . i-if you leave . . . he'll be really, really sad."

Lucy's heart panged; she knew exactly what Agnes was trying to say. "Is that what you're worried about? You're afraid I'll leave you and your dad?"

Agnes nodded. "Daddy's really strong. He's the strongest unicorn ever! But, sometimes unicorns get sad and hurt too, and then it's up to us kittens to make him feel better."

A wave of emotion swept over her at Agnes' simple metaphor - sadness, sympathy, pity and hurt, to name a few. She should've seen this coming. Agnes and her sisters were orphans before Gru found them, and all they knew in their past lives was abandonment and pain. But now that they found someone to love and protect them that they can love and protect in return, it only made sense that little Agnes was so scared of Lucy leaving. Yes, Gru was strong, but even the mightiest of people can be torn down by heartbreak. Agnes didn't want to see her father hurt, but she also didn't want to be abandoned again.

Lucy swept Agnes into her arms, holding her tight to her chest. "Oh, sweetheart," she murmured sadly. "I know. I know this is scary and that you're afraid for your dad. I can't promise you I'll be here forever, because I don't know what the future holds. But," she pulled back to look Agnes in the eyes, the girl still cradled in her arms. "I can promise you two things. One, I will always love you and your sisters, no matter what. And two, I will never, ever try to hurt your dad."

Agnes smiled, her eyes watery with tears. She reached out a small hand, her pinky extended. "Pinky promise," she said.

Lucy grinned, wrapping her finger around Agnes' and squeezing lightly. "Pinky promise."

* * *

**I tried to keep this one short and simple, kind of like Agnes and Lucy's relationship. Not complicated, not confusing, just pure and simple love, which is what I love about them. I wrote them pretty early on in their relationship, so they're not as close as mother-daughter just yet, but they're still fairly attached to one another. I hope I did them justice! **

**Part of the story actually refers to a few lines from a previous chapter, if you happened to catch it.**

**Anyway, I hope you liked it! Review, please!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys, I'm sorry about the lack of updates! My life has been pretty crazy lately. Guess who just turned 21 last weekend? Yep! I had a great birthday, even if it was my first away from home. I'm also turning in my applications for graduate school this month, so hopefully that will go well too. And unfortunately, I've also had a lot of personal issues with friends stressing me out recently that I've had to deal with, so that's been consuming a lot of my time, energy, and will to do pretty much anything. But, I'm back, and I have another chapter!**

**The Edith chapter is almost finished, but I'm just not very happy with it right now. I have a lot to look over and revise. She and Lucy are much harder to write than I thought they would be. So, instead, to tide you over until that chapter is finished, I wrote this!**

**In this one, Lucy and Gru are fresh off a dangerous mission, and Gru's nearly had it with her reckless tendencies. This is set about a year after they get married. I hope yall enjoy! Review, please!**

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"What in the _wurld_ were you _theenking?_" Gru exclaimed in a hushed tone, following in Lucy's trail through the front door.

Lucy kicked off her heels and busied herself with unbuttoning and removing her coat. "Look," she sighed, "I saw an opportunity and I went for it, easy as that." She shrugged, turning to face him. "You know, carpe diem! Right?"

He shook his head furiously. "No, no, no, no seezing the day. Not when it means doing sometheeng completely foolish!" Gru threw his scarf and jacket on the coat rack by the door, idly double checking to make sure the front door was shut and locked before trailing down the hall. He headed into the kitchen, flipping the light switch on, allowing a warm box of glowing light to leak into the otherwise darkened hallway. Lucy followed, knowing that the conversation was far from over.

"Foolish?" she scoffed. "I'm not some rookie, Gru. I've been with the AVL for a while, so I'm pretty sure I know what I'm doing."

She settled herself on a stool at the bar, and folded her arms across the countertop to watch him. On the nearby wall, a clock ticked the seconds away into the late hours of the night. She and Gru had just returned from yet another AVL mission – successful, but exhausting, and more than a little dangerous. The minions had already put the girls to bed hours ago, so the house was quiet and dark, save for the hushed bickering being carried on in the kitchen.

Gru busied himself at the sink on the other side of the counter from her, washing the dishes left behind from the girls' dinner. "Even seasoned vets make bad deecisions sometimes," he retorted. "And what you did was reckless."

She rolled her eyes. "My scanner didn't pick up any traces of anti-infiltration technology in that part of the lair," she replied. "Zip. Nada. So I don't think it was too 'reckless' for me to have assumed that there weren't any traps!"

"Except you were only lookeeng for the high-tech stuff," he said, shaking a soapy sponge in her direction. "And what deed I say before? Many veellains like to fall back on old tactics dat use low technology. Dey know most people forget about dat type of stuff dese days."

"Yeah, but seriously, who even _uses _pit falls and spikes of death anymore? That's some medieval stuff!"

"Maybe, but it works!" he proclaimed.

"Coming from the guy who used to have medieval torture devices as house decorations," she retorted, sitting up straighter on the stool.

"Dat is beeside the point!" he said, waving the notion away agitatedly. "The point _is_, I warned you to be careful, but you weren't, and it nearly got you keelled!"

"But I'm fine, Gru!" she assured him, gesturing widely. "We caught the bad guy and got out scotch free, didn't we? I wasn't hurt and I didn't get caught in any of the traps. I promise, I'm fine."

"But what if _next time_ you're _not_?" he yelled, tossing the sponge down in the sink with a splash of water. Lucy jolted, surprised by the angry outburst. A tense, silent moment stretched out between them in the space of a few heartbeats. He turned his face away, unable to look her in the eye as he continued. "Wh-What if you're not?" he repeated quietly. "What if I'm not dere weeth you, and sometheeng _happens?_ What if you get hurt, and I can't stop it? Den what?"

"Gru - " She reached out a hand across the counter but hesitated in the motion. She hadn't expected this at all, and to see him so distraught caused a sudden aching weight to settle in her chest.

He abandoned the dishes, turning to pace the small stretch of floor along the sink and the island, hands folded behind his back. "You make such irrational deecisions nearly every meession, and constantly put yourself in danger," he said. It would've sounded like he was lecturing her, had his tone not been so utterly worried. "Do you know how many times we've been captured, or caught in traps by dese veellains? How many times booby traps and security measures have nearly keelled us – or you?" He paused in his pacing, looking up and finally meeting her gaze. She nearly gasped at what she saw there. Gru looked . . . _scared_. "Don't you even realize you almost _died_ today?"

"Oh, sweetheart," she murmured, her brows furrowing in sorrow and understanding. She unfolded her long legs from the stool and stood, approaching him slowly. "I'm sorry. I can be reckless sometimes, I know, but it's just part of my nature. You married a Wilde, remember? The first thing I did when I met you was taze you for god's sakes." Lucy smirked, and the tension in Gru's posture seemed to lessen slightly with the humor. She stepped closer, reaching out a hand to grasp his. "Danger is part of the job, though. That's a fact that will never change, no matter how careful I am."

His thumb brushed idly over the back of her hand and he frowned at nothing in particular. "I don't care, I steell don't like it. You should be careful, regardless. Every time you go pull one of your crazy stunts, it worries me," he admitted.

"Well, stop worrying then," she chuckled, "because I can take care of myself. I'm a big girl."

"I should be the one taking care of you," he grumbled. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, attempting to comfort and soothe his worried mind. He responded in kind, pulling her into his broad chest and wrapping his arms around her waist. She hummed happily, basking in the warmth radiating from his skin.

"Well, thank you, I appreciate the offer," she replied kindly.

"I just - I don't want some stupid veellain taking away the best theeng dat's ever happened to me," he murmured. "You and the gurls are all dat I have."

Her heart fluttered, and she realized just how privileged and loved she was for Gru to allow her to see him in such a vulnerable state. He had come so far in learning to trust and open up to her, even though it scared him to death. When they first met, he was heavily guarded and didn't trust a soul. Now, after nearly a year of being married, it was like he was a completely different man. He still had his reservations, of course, but it hardly mattered - Lucy was just so grateful to be able to share her life freely and openly with the man she loved.

"I'm not going anywhere," she said with a smile. "I love you too much for some whack-job to get rid of me that easy."

"And if dey even try, dey can deel with me," he said, returning her smile.

"I would pay good money to see that," she chuckled, and tilted her head up to look at him, elated to see his happiness return.

"I love you," he said fondly, "even if you are a crazy-woman."

"I will take that as a compliment," she laughed.

He took a breath to speak, but paused and looked to the side for a moment, as if hesitating on what he might say. A moment passed before he spoke. "Could you just do one theeng for me, though?" he asked. She nodded, prodding him to continue. He looked back to her, warmth and love in his eyes. "Promise you'll at least try to be safe. If not for me, den for the gurls."

She leaned in, pressing a loving kiss to his lips. She broke away a hair's breadth and smiled mischievously. "Cross my heart, and hope to die."

". . . Dat's not funny."

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**Okay, so there it is! This one was written pretty quickly, but I'm fairly happy with how it turned out. Plus, I got to write an overprotective Gru, which is always fun. **

**I think Lucy tends to be more of a, 'hey, let's go do this dangerous thing because it looks fun', 'do first and ask later' kind of girl. That spontaneity and ability to take risks and not be afraid of what might happen probably drew the AVL to her in the first place. But Gru's not like that at all. He's a very structured guy who likes to have control over how a situation plays out. He doesn't often throw caution to the wind, and when he does, it freaks him out. But when Lucy does it, he freaks out even more. I imagine she would constantly be doing pretty stupid and risky stuff during missions to try and catch the bad guy, because hey, why not? And Gru would watch her, part of him horrified that she might get hurt, and part of him running wildly after her to try and keep up.**

**Oh, and for Lucy's last line, I was just going to have her say, 'pinky promise,' and end it there, but then I figured that 'cross my heart, hope to die' was way more funny and teasing for her to say. It might be corny, but oh well, lol!**

**Anyway, I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey yall! Thanks for all the reviews! I'm glad you liked the last one, even if it's not what yall expected. But now, I'm bringing you the chapter I promised - Lucy and Edith! This one was difficult to write, I'll be honest, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.**

**This is set four months into Gru and Lucy's relationship. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

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"Edith!" Lucy's voice reverberated off the walls, echoing throughout the cavernous house and its winding hallways. "Edith, it's time for lunch!"

She turned a corner, traversing down yet another hall in search of the little girl. She had been to Gru's house enough times to know her way around pretty well, but she had to be careful – it could be fairly easy to lose oneself in the maze of doors, and not everything was exactly what it seemed. (She learned that the hard way during her first few times there, encountering trap doors, hidden stashes of weaponry, and the first time she saw the whole living room just seemingly disappear into the ceiling to make room for the underground lab's secret entrance.) The girls, on the other hand, knew every nook and cranny of the house. They would explore and play everywhere, which meant that when it was time to find them for a meal or bedtime it was like finding the proverbial needle in the haystack.

Currently, Lucy was occupied with finding Edith. She and Lucy were going to meet Gru, Margo and Agnes for lunch after school let out. Edith would normally be at school along with her sisters, were she not suspended for punching a kid in the stomach for stealing her lunch. The decision was hardly fair - both Lucy and Gru went down to the school to talk personally with the principal, Ms. Hadberry, but the short, stout woman wouldn't listen. Gru would've gone by himself, of course, but Lucy went for moral support. That, and she was so riled up at hearing what happened that Gru had to go just to stop her from jumping down Hadberry's throat.

"Edith, where are you?" the agent called again. After no response, she sighed and decided to try looking downstairs again. She'd already checked the girls' room, Gru's room, the library, the lab, and the kitchen – all to no avail. It was like Edith had disappeared. Part of her had begun to worry, but she tried to quell panicky feeling in her stomach. There was no place safer or more secure than Gru's house, she reasoned, and with the never-ending supply of minions at hand, virtually nothing bad could happen without _someone_ knowing . . . _Right?_

She descended the staircase and trailed into the kitchen, absent-mindedly glancing out the large windows that looked out on the backyard. Suddenly, she saw a blur of black fly past, shortly accompanied by a loud crash.

"What the - ?" Equal parts curious and cautious, Lucy crept toward the door, settled firmly in a defensive stance. She emerged out on to the porch steps leading down to the backyard, surveying the expanse of dead grass and colorful plastic toys before her. If that was an intruder, she needed to handle it quickly, lest they get into the house, or worse, get to Edith. That would not be a good surprise for Gru to come home to – 'Welcome back! How was your day? Oh, by the way, someone broke into the house and now Edith is gone.' She shuddered at the thought, focusing instead on finding the source of the noise.

She rounded the corner of the house, from where she heard a slight rustling. In full attack mode, she prepared to face whatever awaited her. She leaped out, striking a fearsome pose and giving a battle cry. "_HIIIYAH!_"

But instead of an intruder, she found Edith, fully decked out in her gi and ninja mask, sprawled on her back across the grass. She'd obviously just taken a tumble, most likely while practicing her ninja skills, but she seemed relatively unharmed. The girl's bright blue eyes stared up at her, accusing and curious.

"Oh, Edith!" Lucy sagged in relief. "There you are. Where have you been, kiddo? It's time to go meet your dad and sisters for lunch."

Edith squirmed into a sitting position, adjusting her ever-present pink hat on her head. "You were totally just gonna ninja me, weren't you?" she asked.

"What? Pfff, no," Lucy chuckled nervously, waving a hand, "of course not. I was just looking for you is all. Now, come on, we'd better head out. We don't want to keep them waiting at the restaurant too long." She held out a hand for Edith to take, but she ignored it, scrambling to her feet by herself. She grabbed her nunchucks and samurai sword off the ground, tucking them away in her gi.

Lucy liked Edith – the girl had spunk, flair, determination, and a wicked attitude that gave Gru more trouble than he'd care to admit. For the four months she'd known her, Edith had been a pretty cool kid, if not a bit hard to read at times. She seemed to be almost emotionally distant, less so now from her father and sisters than from her. At times, the agent didn't know whether to think Edith liked her or hated her. That made it a little more difficult for Lucy to connect with her – definitely harder than it was with Agnes. The youngest child was pretty much an open book who had no problem giving her emotions freely.

Lucy mentally chastised herself. She knew she shouldn't be comparing the sisters in the first place. After all, they were all individuals. But, they were a very cohesive little family, and she figured it was an 'in for a penny, in for a pound' kind of deal – if one girl didn't like her, none of them would. Besides, this was extremely new territory for her. She'd never really been around kids a lot before, and none of the men she'd ever dated (as short-lived as those relationships were) had any kids either. So now, not only did Lucy get to test the waters in her still relatively new life with Gru, she had to figure out how best to be there for his daughters as well. Not that she minded, of course. She absolutely adored Gru and the girls to no end, and she would do anything to keep from messing this up.

"Yeah right, you so were!" Edith exclaimed, walking in step with Lucy across the yard. "You had the pose and everything!"

Lucy, drawn abruptly from her thoughts, glanced at Edith from her peripheral vision and smiled. "Well, if I _was_ going to 'ninja' anybody, it would've been a bad guy, not you."

"I bet you get to beat up a whole _bunch_ of guys when you go on top-secret missions with Dad," she enthused, punching at imaginary foes in front of her. "It must be _sooo_ cool! I wish I could do that!"

Lucy hitched a shoulder. "I could teach you some moves, if you want," she offered happily. "The AVL teaches us a bunch of neat stuff, and I'm sure you'd have it down in no time."

"_Really?_" The girl seemed ready to explode with sheer excitement, but a second later she hesitated, the bright light in her eyes dimming. "Wait . . . I - I can't. People will get mad at me 'cause they think I'm gonna use it to beat kids up."

Lucy frowned, pausing in her trek across the yard and kneeling down to Edith's height. "What do you mean, sweetie?"

"Like that kid who stole my lunch," Edith fumed. "I tried to get it from him, but he kept shoving me and running away. I only punched him 'cause I wanted it back. I wasn't being trying to be mean, _he_ was, but I'm the one who got in trouble!" She crossed her arms across her chest firmly. "It's not fair."

"No, it isn't," Lucy agreed. "But don't worry. You know your dad and I are on your side, right?" She reached out and touched Edith's shoulder softly but reassuringly. Edith peeked up at her from under the brim of her hat. "I mean, I'm not one for always using violence to solve things, but that little punk deserved some payback."

Edith still looked discouraged. "But the teachers didn't think so, and neither did Ms. Hadberry," she protested. "Her and my teachers are always getting me in trouble."

"Then your dad and I will just have to have another talk with them, won't we? Maybe I'll even let Gru bring his freeze ray." The redhead grinned mischievously, then leaned in and adopted a secretive air about her. "And besides," she whispered, "you want to know something?" Edith mimicked her, leaning in and nodding excitedly. "When I was your age, I used to get in trouble all the time," she said, "just like you."

"Nuh-uh," the girl replied incredulously, a smile hooking the corner of her mouth.

Lucy thought back to her childhood, to a younger, more rambunctious Lucy with pigtails, mud-caked overalls and cowboy boots. The memories of elementary school came flooding back, visions of playgrounds and classrooms, sounds of laughter and shouting, glimpses of little faces long since grown up. "Oh, yeah," she said. "The teachers were always on my case because I would get into fights with the other kids. I would get detention _all_ the time."

"Why?"

"Same reason as you," she replied. "Some of the other kids picked on me, so I defended myself. After I showed those bullies who was boss, they stopped giving me a hard time. Made myself quite the reputation too."

Edith looked almost awestruck, the admiration in her eyes warming Lucy's heart. She saw so much of herself in Edith sometimes - the wild spirit, the adventuresome tendencies, the craving for excitement. In a way, they were very similar. Maybe it wouldn't be so difficult to connect with her after all. Edith, despite her rambunctiousness, was a good kid with a kind heart. Lucy was beginning to doubt that she had the capacity to hate anyone, herself included. Maybe she actually liked her after all, and just had her own odd way of showing it. And who knows, Lucy thought happily, if things with Gru kept going as well as they have been, maybe - just maybe - enough time would pass that Edith could look up to her as a role model, or - though Lucy dared not even think it - perhaps even as a mother.

The woman cuffed Edith's shoulder with a cheeky grin. "Don't worry about anyone else, kiddo. You're awesome the way you are. Just keep being yourself, and don't let anyone try to tell you otherwise." Edith nodded, resolute, a smile spread across her face. Confident that the crisis was averted, Lucy stood to continue across the yard. "So what do you say," she asked, "are you up for some lunch with the rest of the Gru family?"

Little fingers slipped into her hand unexpectedly, gripping firm and warm. Lucy looked down, shocked. The ninja girl simply walked forward, tugging Lucy along with her on their way to the house.

"You know what, Lucy?"

"What?"

"You're pretty awesome, too."

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**Okay, so there it is! Honestly, I'm still not entirely happy with this one. Edith was very hard to write for, and I'm not sure I captured her character very well. I tried though, and I hope it didn't throw yall off too much.**

**Anyway, I feel like Lucy's relationship with Edith is a simple one, kind of like Agnes', but not so emotionally driven or connected. Edith admires Lucy a lot for her awesome personality and the totally kick-butt stuff she does for the AVL, but she's not overly demonstrative of her feelings. Lucy doesn't have a problem with it either - she loves the kids for who they are - but it does make navigating the relationship a bit harder. Either way, Lucy knows the two can always bond over some martial arts, if nothing else.**

**I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**

**(By the way, I'm leaving for a week-long vacation in Colorado on Saturday, so it might take me a bit longer to write up a chapter than usual. Just a heads up!)**


	9. Chapter 9

**And, it's done! The sister trilogy is finished with this chapter on Margo, which admittedly took me a bit longer than I'd have liked to write. I got a little bit done over my vacation (which was awesome, I had such a great time seeing my family again!) and then took the rest of this week to finish and revise it.  
**

**So, this is set five months into Gru and Lucy's relationship. Margo is caught sneaking out to go see a boy when Lucy is babysitting and Gru is out doing stuff for the AVL. Gru's not too happy with Margo's disrespectful attitude toward his girlfriend lately, and Lucy is determined to figure out what's going on and how she can fix it. I hope yall enjoy! Review, please!**

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"Margo, you get back here right now!" Gru yelled, watching as his oldest daughter stomped up the stairs in a totally uncharacteristic show of disobedience.

"Just - just leave me alone!" she replied, balling her fists at her side.

Gru planted a foot on the first step of the staircase, craning his head back to look at her. "Oh no, I don't theenk so, young lady. You get down here and apologize to Lucy this eenstance," he demanded, pointing emphatically at the ground.

Margo paused in her ascent to cross her arms and glare down at her father. "Why? She's not the boss of me!" Her eyes shot to the doorway of the kitchen, where Lucy made her reluctant emergence, wringing her hands nervously.

"Margo. . ." Gru spoke in a warning tone, as if daring her to continue. However, stubborn as she was, she didn't listen.

"And, she's _not_ my _mom_," she spat. With that, she continued up the last of the steps, running the rest of the way to her and her sisters' room. Seconds later, the door slammed shut, the loud noise echoing through the otherwise quiet house. A silent, tense moment passed.

Lucy winced. "Gru," she stepped toward him, hesitance lacing her tone, "it's okay, really - "

"No, it's not," he said sharply, a frown set deep into his brows. "Margo deesrespected you, and she deedn't leesten when she should have. I cannot allow dat to stand."

"Yeah," she shrugged, "but she was right. I'm not her mom. I don't have any say in what she does."

"But I do," he disagreed. "We have been together for five months. If she doesn't know by now dat she needs to respect you as an adult and as the woman I am dateeng, den sometheeng needs to be done. I told her to leesten to you when I was gone, and she deedn't." His frown deepened. "Even worse, you found her sneeking out weeth a boy. A _boy!_"

"I know." Lucy glanced back up the stairs, where the quiet was almost eerie compared to the yelling that filled the space not five minutes ago. "I - I've just never seen Margo act like that before," she said.

"I haven't either," he sighed. The anger in his tone slowly gave way to worry. He met her eyes, and she could see the confusion that lay there. "I don't know what's going on weeth her lately. She's never been dis way before."

"Well, she _is_ getting into her teen years," Lucy said. She drew closer to him, hugging his shoulder. "Maybe her rebellious phase is just finally kicking in."

Gru shook his head. "No, it's more than dat. I know it."

"Well, why don't I try to talk to her then," she suggested. "Whatever's wrong, it's obviously got something to do with me. Maybe I can figure out what's going on and try to fix it."

"But, are you sure you're okay with dat?" he asked hesitantly, wrapping his arm around her.

"Of course!" Admittedly, she sounded far more confident than she felt. "I love the girls, and if something's wrong, I want to do whatever I can to make things right."

"Do you want me to come weeth you?"

"No, I'll go by myself." She smiled and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "Don't worry, it'll be okay."

He contemplated her silently for a moment, looking like he was wary of letting the two handle this alone. Finally, he sighed and nodded. "Alright, alright. Just come and find me if dere's anytheeng dat goes wrong, okay?"

"No problem, partner," she smiled.

It took the whole trip upstairs for Lucy to screw up the courage to knock on Margo's door. Even then, she stood at the threshold for a moment before allowing her fist to rap lightly on the wood. "Margo?" she called gently.

There was a moment of silence before her faint voice answered from somewhere deep in the room, "Go away. I don't want to talk to you, or Gru, or anyone."

"Well, you don't have to talk," Lucy replied kindly, "but would you be willing to listen for a bit? I just want to say something." There wasn't an answer, so Lucy took that to mean she was free to continue. "Look, I-I know that tonight didn't end exactly like you hoped it would. And I'm sorry. But, I had no idea where you were when I came back with the groceries tonight, and . . . I panicked."

Lucy turned, resting her shoulders against the door. "Gru trusted me to take care of you girls while he was out dealing with the AVL weapons commissioner, and I don't think I could stand breaking that trust – not only because I would disappoint him, but because I would let the three of you down, too." Margo still said nothing, but Lucy could hear her moving about in the room, drawing closer to the door. Lucy slid to sit on the floor, crossing her legs and continuing. "So, yeah, I called your dad. I knew he would be able to find you, no matter what. I honestly didn't know what else to do - I was too freaked out that something might have happened to you. I didn't _want_ to get you in trouble. I just didn't know what else to do to make sure you were safe."

". . . Really?"

Lucy perked up. It was the first sign of Margo's willingness to talk to her the entire night. "Yes, really," she said. "I care about the three of you so much. You have no idea what you mean to me."

"You're not just saying that because you're dating my dad?" she asked. Margo was still angry, that was certain. But, oddly enough, Lucy thought she could hear sadness hidden in her tone.

"Margo, no!" Lucy exclaimed. "Not at all, sweetie. Is that what you thought?"

"Maybe. . . no . . . I – I just. . ." Her voice was close enough that Lucy could picture her leaning against the door just inches away from where she was. "You don't understand how hard this is. For my sisters, yeah, but even more for me."

"What do you mean, sweetheart?" Lucy prodded gently.

"Having you here," she replied. "Edith and Agnes don't remember things like I do. They're too young to remember."

"Remember what?"

There was a long pause before Margo spoke, her voice soft and broken. "My mother. I – I remember my birth mother."

Lucy gasped, feeling the shock hit her like a punch in the gut. She clenched her fist over her heart and shook her head, feeling so foolish for not seeing it before. "O-Oh, Margo, I'm so sorry – "

"I'm the only one who does," she said quietly, a despondent sort of urgency to her voice. "Edith and Agnes can't remember theirs. They were really little when they were given up for adoption, not even old enough to remember their families." Her voice shook as she continued, "Sometimes, it makes me sad, thinking they don't remember anything in the beginning but Miss Hattie. But other times, I'm jealous that they don't have to forget."

The redhead turned, getting up on her knees and pressing her hands to the door. "W-What was she like?" she asked. "Your birth mother?"

Margo sighed. "She was . . . she was beautiful. She had hair like mine, but it was in these long waves that went down her back. And she was kind, not like Miss Hattie at all. She would play with me all the time, and when I had bad dreams she would tuck me in and sing me to sleep. S-She used to call me her beautiful angel." Margo paused, her voice choked with tears. "But suddenly, she got really sick, and she had to go stay at the hospital. I stayed with my grandparents for a long time, until one day, my mom couldn't fight anymore and she just . . . died. I didn't understand then, but I had to be given up for adoption. My grandparents never liked me or my mom very much because I never had a dad. They didn't want me, so they took me to Miss Hattie's Girl's Home. That's where I grew up, until Gru adopted me."

Lucy could barely speak, overwhelmed with sorrow and grief. She struggled to comprehend how such a wonderful child could overcome such a horrible thing so early in life, and still be the bright, lovely girl she was.

Suddenly, all the things that she'd been doing to act out made sense. Margo was still so young when she had to deal with the terrible loss of someone she held dear. Then Gru came along, taking her and her sisters in and filling the role of the father she never had. Things had been hard at first, but in the end, she had a family again.

But then Lucy came into the picture and developed such close ties to Gru, Edith and Agnes, that Margo must have felt like she was intruding on an area she had no right to be. How dare Lucy try to fill the role of a pseudo-type mother when her own loss was so fresh? Not to mention the abandonment issues the three girls suffered from that made it abundantly clear of how terrified they were of losing any major figure in their life. Considering all of that together, she could hardly blame Margo for not wanting her there.

But how could she not have seen the signs? Why couldn't Lucy have figured this out herself, like she did with Margo's sisters? Lucy mentally berated herself, wishing that she had only known sooner so that maybe all of this could have been avoided.

"I'm sorry such an awful thing happened to you Margo," she choked out, her heart slowly breaking. "I know how hard losing a mother can be."

"You do?" her watery voice asked timidly.

Lucy wiped away stray tears running down her cheeks and nodded. "Yeah. I lost mine ten years ago."

"D-Did you love her?"

It was a struggle for Lucy to keep her voice steady as she answered. Ten years may have been a long time ago, but the grief was still as real and as fresh as that far off winter's day. "Yes. Very much so."

Slowly, the doorknob turned, and Margo began to crack open the door. Her face peeked out, red and tear-stained, and it was all Lucy had not to pull her into her arms that very instant. Margo observed her cautiously before widening the door a bit more and stepping out halfway. There was a silent moment that the two watched each other before one of them spoke.

"I-I'm sorry, Lucy," Margo whispered. "For everything."

Lucy's resolve broke, and she reached out, wrapping her arms around Margo and tugging her close into her embrace. "Oh sweetheart, it's okay," she murmured. "I forgive you." Margo's arms wound around her neck in return, and she tucked her face onto her shoulder, muffling her renewed tears. "I know why you're so upset with me," Lucy said softly, "and I understand. But, I _promise_ you Margo, I would never and could never replace your mother. She has a special place in your heart that I can never fill, and I know that. I don't want you to ever think that I'm trying to."

She pulled back and looked Margo in the eyes. "All I want is to be here for you and your sisters in any way I can. And if that's just as Lucy 'the crazy woman that's dating your dad', that's fine." She reached up, running her thumbs over Margo's cheeks and brushing away the lingering tears. Margo sniffed, a small smile fighting its way onto her face. Lucy smiled warmly. "I would never ask you to give up or replace something so precious to you. All I'm asking for is a little extra space in your heart."

Margo nodded, the storm cloud of emotion lightening from her expression. "I think I can do that," she said.

"Good." Lucy squeezed her shoulders affectionately. Margo laughed, squirming away slightly. "You and your sisters have a place in mine, right next to your dad."

Lucy sobered a bit, taking the girl's small hand in hers. Margo looked up at her, curiosity in her eyes. "Thank you for sharing some of your past with me, Margo. I know it must have been hard for you, and I want you to know how much I appreciate it. You can come to me with anything, anything at all, and it'll be safe with me. I promise."

"Thanks, Lucy," Margo said. Her happiness and sincerity were a welcome sight to both after such a terrible revelation.

"Which reminds me," Lucy said, her voice taking on a sly tone, "what was with that guy, kiddo? Sneaking out isn't really like you. I mean, you're usually so honest."

Margo looked away, a blush rising to her cheeks. "Yeah," she stammered, "about that . . . He's this guy from my grade. He's really cool, and I want him to like me. So, when he invited me to meet him at the arcade down the street, I had to go." She looked back at Lucy, hope in her eyes. "You understand right? You were a kid like me once, didn't you ever want to make a guy like you?"

Lucy laughed slightly, nodding. "Yeah, I remember being your age. It was a long time ago, but you never forget it. I still remember my first crush from high school, Bobby Stinson. _Oh_, I was wild over him. He was one of the really cool guys, you know, kind of like Antonio was," Lucy teased. Margo looked away and blushed at the mention of her first ever crush, no doubt memories of cookies and salsa dances crossing her mind. "He never noticed me much," Lucy said. "I wasn't one of the popular kids, always too involved in my studies or daydreaming about being a super spy. He wasn't the only guy I had an eye for, though. But you know," Lucy hooked a finger under Margo's chin, guiding her to look at her, "no matter how many boys I liked, or how many liked me, I never let that distract me from doing what was right. Just because you like someone doesn't mean you have to do anything crazy or dumb to impress them. Trust me, you'll be much better off that way."

"Are you sure?" she asked doubtfully.

"Positive. Besides, you don't want a guy that'll make you jump through crazy hoops just to get his attention, do you?"

Margo hesitated before shaking her head. "No, I guess not."

"Exactly. What you should do is wait for that one guy to come around who can't take his eyes off you, even when you're just being yourself." Lucy smiled, goofy and lovestruck, thoughts of Gru popping up in her mind. "Now _that's_ a guy worth going crazy over."

"You're right," Margo agreed. "I shouldn't care what boys think of me. If they like me for me, that's all that matters."

"There we go!" Lucy cheered. "That's the Margo I know!" The girl giggled, looking away and messing with her glasses bashfully. "So," she ventured, "are we okay?"

Margo looked at her and smiled warmly. "Yeah," she said, "we're okay." She stepped forward, encompassing Lucy in a brief, tight hug before pulling away.

"Good," Lucy breathed. After a moment, she pulled herself to her feet and smiled down at her. "Well, I better go tell your dad it's safe now. He'll be up to tuck you and your sisters in soon." Lucy turned, heading for the staircase when Margo's voice stopped her.

"Hey, Lucy?" she called. Lucy turned, glancing back at her. Margo looked at her with a warmth and acceptance she hadn't seen from her in months. "Maybe next time you're over, you can read us a bedtime story?" she asked.

Lucy grinned excitedly, warmth blooming in her heart. "I'd love to, sweetie."

Margo nodded, turning and placing a hand on her door. "Goodnight, Lucy."

"Sweet dreams, Margo."

* * *

**So, about this chapter - there a whole bunch of dialogue in this one, but we find out a bit of Margo and Lucy's pasts and see some major relationship and character development. (Well, that's what I was trying to portray, so hopefully! lol) **

**My headcanon about Margo's mom is that she had Margo out of wedlock with a typical deadbeat dad that ran soon as he found out. Then, when Margo's mom passed away (I was thinking it would be from something like cancer), her grandparents are unwilling to take her in because they are very religious and believe she's the product of a sin. So instead of taking care of an 'abomination', they decide to put her in the system.  
**

**Also, if the events leading up to the chapter are a bit unclear, here's what it's about: Gru went out to deal with an AVL agent who's in charge of commissioning weapons from Gru. He asks Lucy to babysit for the night because he knows he'll be out pretty late. She agrees, comes over, then decides to run out for five minutes to get groceries for dinner. She comes back and realizes that Margo is gone, leaving her sisters at the house by themselves. She freaks out, calls Gru who freaks out even more, comes home, tracks her down (because let's be honest, he's probably put tracking chips in them by now, the overprotective worrier that he is) and takes her home.  
**

**I didn't want to put all that in the chapter, because one, it would take too long, and two, I wanted to kind of drop the reader into the situation to give them a sense of being overwhelmed by the amount of emotion, and also for them to focus on that aspect, too.**

**Anyway, I know a lot of yall were looking forward to this chapter, so I hope I didn't disappoint! Thanks for reading, and please, review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank yall so much for the amazing reviews for the last chapter! Apparently it brought some of yall to tears, which makes me both feel oddly proud and want to apologize at the same time, lol! Anyway, I think I whipped this one up fairly quickly so there wasn't too long of a delay. Oh, _and _it's the tenth chapter! Woo!**

**This is set very early during Gru and Lucy's relationship, just under two months into them dating. Lucy gets curious as to why Gru doesn't like being touched by other people, and is determined to find out why. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

* * *

Gru was not a very _touchy _person.

That was one of the first things Lucy learned about Gru when she became his partner: he didn't like to be touched and he didn't like touching other people. That became blatantly obvious fairly early to her, being the happy, excitable, touchy-feely person she was. Lucy was also a people person – well, meaning that she loved people, because people didn't always love her back – but that meant she _loved_ to interact with them, especially in a tactile sense. Hugging them, hanging on them, patting their back or shoulder, or just being close them, that was how she established connections. She didn't do it to bother people, or to make them uncomfortable. Quite the opposite in fact – she just found touch very comforting. She couldn't help it, it was just who she was.

But Gru was entirely different. She remembered the first few times she tried to touch him, or even get near him. A light tap on the shoulder, and he would flinch. A friendly pat on the arm or back, and he'd act like he was burned. Get into his personal space, and he would freeze up like he had no idea what to do. Given the type of person he was and the general air he gave off, it didn't suprise her that he didn't like people very much, but she didn't expect his reaction to be so skittish. She'd never met anyone who responded the way he did, and it made her wonder why exactly he acted that way. True, everyone had their guards, but _this_, this was something different entirely.

That's not to say he was always that way. Back when they were hunting El Macho, only a few days into their partnership, he began to relax around her and get more accustomed to her spontaneous personal space invasions. He even stopped flinching half the time, which she took as a small victory, even if he still stared at her like she was crazy. But, it was progress, and no matter how small, she would take it. After all, she really _liked_ Gru, and was just waiting for the day when he might actually hug her back. Eventually, she got her wish, but that was only after she was kidnapped and strapped to a rocket. She wasn't going to complain though - Gru saved her life, asked her out on a date, and hugged her all on that very day too. That was pretty awesome in her book. And yet still, he was oddly reserved about touching. After all, that hug while they were treading water was the only contact he had ever reciprocated up until that point.

Even now, after almost two months of them dating, it was like Gru still had those guards up. He barely ever initiated any type of contact, whether it was holding her hand, or hugging her, or even kissing her. She didn't mind at first. She knew he was shy around women (but she also knew that wasn't the main reason he didn't like physical contact) but that didn't really bother her. Besides, when ever they touched, in any capacity, it always sent off fireworks inside her head. Who cared who initiated it, she figured, as long as they were close then it didn't matter. So, for a while, Lucy was the one who would push things along. And, for a few weeks, that worked. But more and more lately, she was beginning to doubt things. Why didn't Gru like being touched? Was it _just_ because of _her? _Was she annoying him and he just didn't want to say anything? Did he . . . did he still like her? That last thought was one she didn't even want in her head, because she knew it wasn't true. She knew Gru liked her, saw it in the way he looked at her, in the things he said, in the rare touches he would share. But still, the thought was there. And it nagged her over and over.

Those same doubtful questions were circling in Lucy's head one night, her hands wrapped around a steaming mug of tea and her gaze lost somewhere in its shallow, murky depths. She was distracted by her thoughts for quite some time, so she didn't notice right away when Gru entered the kitchen, one of his minions following close behind – Kevin, if she recognized him correctly (she was getting better at identifying the little munchkins as she spent more time at Gru's house).

"Yes, dat's what I told you earlier. I want dose blueprints for the new laser gun brought to Doctor Nefario, _now_," Gru ordered, guesturing dramatically. "The sooner we start on dis theeng, the sooner Ramsbottom weell stop bothering me about it. Now, go." He dismissed Kevin with a wave of his hand. The diminutive creature saluted, replying in the gibberish language he and the other minions spoke before turning and rushing off, managing to run into the doorway in the process.

Gru rolled his eyes and turned, continuing farther into the kitchen. He fetched a mug from the cabinet and then paused halfway to the counter, having just spotted Lucy where she sat at the dinner table against the back wall. The whole kitchen area was dim, lit only by a few can lights in the ceiling and the hanging lamp over the table where Lucy sat. It shone a gentle, golden beam of light down over her, glinting off of her red hair and casting shadows across her face. The large window behind the booth that usually would've given a view of the backyard now only showed the pitch darkness of the encroaching late fall night. The only visible things were tiny pinpricks of light in the distance from far off houses, and the mirrored reflection of the kitchen and its two occupants.

"Oh, hello Lucy," he said happily, "I deedn't know you were still here. Deedn't you say you were going home after deener to start on paperwork from the meession?"

Lucy shook herself, suddenly realizing that Gru had spoken. "Oh, hi Gru," she replied, her cheeriness only partially forced. "Yeah, I did, but I figured I'd stick around a little bit longer to see if I could catch you again. How is the work in the lab going?"

He busied himself with pouring a cupful of tea from the kettle on the stove as he spoke. "Slowly, and painfully. Between the Doctor's bad hearing and the minion's being . . . well, just being demselves, I can hardly get any work done today." He walked toward her, intent on continuing, when he paused, noticing just how distracted she seemed. "What are you theenking about?" he asked gently.

"Thinking about?" she repeated. She picked up her spoon, using it to stir the contents of her mug, and trained her eyes on the swirling liquid. "Nothing. Not really. Just the usual."

He smiled, dipping an eyebrow curiously. "You know," He slid into the booth and sat across from her, wrapping his long fingers around the mug to absorb the warmth, "for as long as I have known you, you have never been dis quiet. So you have to be theenkeeng _sometheeng_."

She shrugged, slipping her gaze across the table to rest on him. "I guess I'm just feeling a bit off is all."

"Off? About what?"

She tapped the spoon on the table, not sure how to go about breaching the subject without making Gru uncomfortable, or sounding accusatory or too needy. Even though this _was_ a legitimate need, she figured there was no need to scare him off before she even started.

"If I asked you a kind of . . . personal type question, would you mind?"

He rose a brow, seeming both intrigued and a bit nervous. "I suppose not," he replied slowly. "What is the question about?"

"Us." She paused, rethinking something. "Or, well, more like you. But it has to do with us. But I don't want that to freak you out or anything - "

Gru shook his head, waving a hand to try and slow her down. "Okay, okay, just ask the question!"

She hesitated, twisting her hands together nervously. "Why are you so sensitive about your personal space and people touching you?"

Gru stopped, seeming completely caught off guard by her question. He looked at her and blinked, unable to speak for a few seconds until his brain finally caught up to what was going on. "What? Sensitive?" he cried, laughing unconvincingly. "What are you talking about? I'm – I'm not senseetive about my space!"

She looked at him, a brow raised and a small smile hooking her mouth. "Gru, come on."

He continued, over-assuring in the way she knew he was when he was trying to hide something. "I have three gurls who are always using me as a jungle gym!" he exclaimed. "How is dat senseetive?"

"Because they're your daughters, Gru. You love them and trust them more than anyone else in the world. You'd do anything to make them happy, even if it meant letting them climb on you."

"So what?" he asked, taking a sip from his mug.

"_So_," she explained, "they're different. If it's anyone else but your daughters, you freak out."

"I do not!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, you do!" Lucy insisted. He scoffed, crossing his arms. She set her brows and smirked. "And you know what? I'm going to prove it."

"You – wait, you're what?" he asked, quickly uncrossing his arms and eyeing her.

"You heard me," she challenged. She abandoned her tea mug and began scooting herself down the bench. She rounded the back curve and slowed when she reached the cushion closest to him. He watched her apprehensively, but seemed determined to prove his point – almost as much as she was.

She slid closer to him, until her leg pressed against his up to the hip. She grabbed his arm and moved it, nuzzling herself against his side and letting his arm fall around her shoulders. "Am I in your space now, Gru?"

He glanced down at her, a touch of pink across his cheeks. "No, of course not," he scoffed.

She hummed a small laugh, then crossed her legs, throwing the top one over his knees. She pressed herself more firmly against him, inching forward and angling herself so she could get a better look at his face but still be close to him. "Am I now?"

The red in his cheeks deepened, and she saw his eyes flit down to glance at her long legs. "N-No."

Lucy grinned. She knew she was trying to prove a point, but she didn't know just how _fun _it would be. She tucked her other leg across his lap, now practically sitting on him at this point. She adjusted his arm, moving it from her shoulders to around her waist and back, his fingers brushing the curve of her opposite hip. She looked up at him and smiled, a light and flirty smirk. "What about now?"

"Ah, I-I . . . no." He could barely even form an answer. He continued to watch her, looking torn between pulling her closer or pushing her off and running. She noticed with glee that his blush had spread, turning the tips of his ears a rosy color. She briefly wondered if she should be concerned about how torturing him like this made her giddy, but pushed the thought aside. She was so close to being right, she just needed to do a _bit _more. Lucy reached up a hand, slowly drawing it closer and closer to him until her fingers brushed against the edge of his jawline in the lightest, most teasing touch. As soon as her hand made contact, he jumped near out of his skin, almost tossing her from his lap. She cried out in suprise and had to grab on to his arm just to keep her balance.

"Gah! Okay, okay, fine!" he exclaimed, waving frantically. "You win! Happy now?"

All it took was one look at his flustered and irritated face for her to lose it. She collapsed against him and held tighter to his arm, uproarious laughter shaking her body. She just couldn't help it, it was priceless!

Gru furrowed his brow and rolled his eyes, looking heavenward as if to pray for help. "сумасшедшая женщина, ты хочешь убить меня?"* he muttered dryly, as her laughter began to subside into much more manageable giggles.

"Ooh, breaking out the Russian, are we?" she asked playfully, shooting him a smile to calm his rustled feathers. "Must be a special occasion."

"You know, I seem to be doeeng it more and more weeth you around," he shot back, unable to keep the slight teasing ire out of his voice.

"Oh come on, Gru, I was just trying to prove a point," she replied, straightening herself back up but not quite removing herself from his space. "And I was right. So come on, spill. What's up with you and your crazy bubble space issues?"

He glanced away reluctantly in response, fiddling with the end of his scarf in a nervous manner. Oh no, she thought. He was still hesitating. Within the space of his silence, her mind leapt to the worst case scenarios. What if she was right all along, she wondered. What if it really _was_ because of her? She frowned, drawing back a bit from him and looking away, her hands tangling in front of her. "I-It's not _me_, is it?" she asked, giving voice to just one of her current fears. "I mean, do you not like having me near because it annoys you? Because if you're worried about telling me and hurting my feelings, I - "

"Whoa, whoa, slow down dere!" he said softly, reaching out and grabbing her hands in his. "Lucy, I _promise_, dis is not because of you. Dis is a problem dat I've had almost my entire life, ever seence I was a keed." He paused, looking down momentarily as if to gather the words and bolster his courage to tell her what ever secret he was holding. "My life has not been a very happy one, at times," he admitted. "Groweeng up, I deed not have affection shown to me. You have not met her yet, but I can promise you, my mother can be, and often times is, a cruel woman. She was not the type of parent I am - dere were no bedtime stories, no hugs, no goodnight keesses. She raised me the only way she knew how; with very, very tough love dat most times, deedn't feel like love at all. Even when I was old enough to go to school, I-I was not used to people trying to be friendly. If anyone ever got in my personal space, it was usually to hit me, or beat me up. Most of dat deedn't change until I grew up and deecided to be a veellain. At dat point, people were too scared of me to get close. I deecided I deed not need affection anymore. And, I liked it dat way. It was better den getting beat up or put down."

She looked at him sadly, sympathy written across her face. She was glad that her earlier fears were untrue, but at the same time found herself mourning for the hardships that he'd had to face in his life. More and more about Gru was beginning to make sense, and suddenly the great, dark mystery of the former villain was just a bit clearer. "And what about me?" she prompted.

"I'm not sure," he admitted. "I mean, I know you aren't trying to hurt me."

"Then what are you so worried about?"

"Dat's the theeng," he replied, "I don't know. I like having you close to me. I like being able to hold you, and touch you, a-and keess you." She swore she saw another flash of red pass across his cheeks. He looked away, unable to hold her gaze while so vulnerable. "And I like when you do dose theengs too. But, den I realized dat you're one of the furst people I've ever known who's ever really _tried_ to get close to me. I've never really had someone be so . . . so openly affectionate toward me. And, while dat makes me so, so happy, it also scares me."

She reached up, slowly placing a hand on either side of his jaw and guiding him to look at her, and was thoroughly suprised when, for the first time, he didn't flinch. He even allowed his hands to settle in the dip of her waist, anchoring him to her. She graced him with a small, loving smile. "Why are you scared?"

"Because I don't know what I'm doing!" he cried, a sad, desperate tone to his voice. "I've never been shown affection, and I'm terrified dat I'll mess sometheeng up. I don't even know _how _to be close to someone! But I _want _to be! I want to be weeth you, and do all dose things I said before, even if it scares me. But, I'm even more terrified dat if - if you . . . " He tried to look away, but she held fast and refused to let him budge.

"Tell me, Gru."

"I-I'm terrified dat if you leave, I'll lose the only person dat's ever cared, and the only person I theenk I could ever get close to."

She froze, and for a long moment, a silence fell between them, consisting of only the two looking at one another as the sounds of night carried on from the world outside.

Gru was the first to speak, breaking eye contact with her and sighing deeply. He reached up, taking her hands folding them within his own, breaking her from her reverie. "I-I'm sorry," he apologized, "dat was probably too much too soon."

She shook her head, another small smile breaching her lips. "No, not at all," she reassured him. "That was exactly what it should have been. You know, I don't think I've ever seen you be so open with someone before, and I've gotta say, I'm glad it was with me." She squeezed his hands and he returned the guesture, a smile finally breaking across his features.

"So, you're okay with all of dat?"

"Of course," she replied honestly. "After all, do you really think you're the only one who's scared?"

He looked at her, cocking a brow in an utterly confused way. "You, scared? Of what?"

"Same as you - that I might lose the best guy I've ever dated."

Gru chuckled, running his thumb over the back of her hand. "I don't think you have anytheeng to be afraid of, then."

"And neither do you," she promised. "Please don't be scared to show how you feel, Gru. You won't mess up, and I promise I won't run away. You just have to promise me you'll try."

He didn't answer at first, but leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. He pulled away a second later, still lingering close to her and gazing at her fondly. "I promise."

"And you know what," she murmured with a mischievous grin, throwing her arms around his neck and slipping closer, "I think I found the perfect time and place to start."

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***"сумасшедшая женщина, ты хочешь убить меня?" = "Crazy woman, are you trying to kill me?"  
**

**Okay, so that's the tenth chapter! It didn't turn out quite as 'fluffy' as I initially pictured it, but I did enjoy how Lucy tortured Gru, lol!**

**So, from what I've seen in the movies, Gru does not like being touched or having his personal space invaded by strangers. At all. For example, the carnie from Super Silly Funland poked Gru in the chest and Gru, who was already pissed off, looks like he wants to beat the man. Another example, when he first adopted the girls, he didn't want to hug them or for them to hang off of him like Agnes would always do. In the second one, he's forced to get over it somewhat, because Lucy is pretty much always in his business. But that doesn't mean he didn't still have his moments of 'oh god, get this person away from me.' However, I think it's different in cases when Gru is aiming to intimidate or appear evil, because at that point he has a higher motive and is just trying to manipulate the other person or establish himself over them. For example, in the second movie during the first scene with Ramsbottom, Gru shoves past him and then invades his personal space to insult him.  
**

**It wasn't my intention to make Gru appear overly skittish or cowed during the fic, so I apologize if he seems that way. My aim was to really explore his dislike of physical contact and the reasons behind it, and the effects it would have with Lucy.**

**Oh yeah, and I used Russian in the fic for one of Gru's lines because I just couldn't help it! My headcanon is that Gru's mother tongue is Russian, and he sometimes uses it when he's really annoyed, exasperated or angry. Also, Lucy _loves _when Gru speaks Russian to her, so he'll also use it on special occasions.**

**Anyway, I hope yall enjoyed it! Review, plase!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thank yall again for all the reviews! I love writing these oneshots so much, so I'm really glad yall like them too. This chapter makes this fic one of the longest I've ever written, right behind a Teen Titans fic I did back in 2009. (Oh my god, that's 4 years ago. Has it really been that long?) Anyway, I adore the DM movies and the fandom, and I hope it shows!**

**So, a quick thing about this chapter - it's a sort of continuation of the last chapter. I had a few reviews that suggested I do something like last time, where Lucy continues to work with Gru on his space issues while he struggles to accept that liking it is okay. I loved the idea (because let's face it, we all enjoy some Grucy lovin') so I decided to run with it.**

**This chapter is set about a month after the previous one, so around three months/three-and-a-half months. Lucy and Gru narrowly escape after an intense car chase, and have to hide out for a few hours. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

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As the car tires squealed, sending them peeling at a dangerous tilt around a corner and leaving behind the acrid smell of burnt rubber, it was all Gru could do to thank god they'd gotten out of there alive.

He clutched the dashboard of Lucy's car, throwing panicked glances over his shoulder to track the location of their pursuers. Thankfully, his partner's utterly reckless driving skills actually came in handy for once – the beams of their headlights were shrinking down into smaller and smaller glowing orbs before disappearing altogether behind the crest of the horizon line. Gru sighed and relaxed slightly in his seat for what felt like the first time in ages. He cast a glance at the driver next to him, her hands still gripping the wheel with white-knuckled intensity, and of course, a wide grin plastered to her face.

"I theenk we finally lost them," he told her. "Find some place for us to hide, queeckly, before dey catch up."

"Got it," Lucy replied, nodding before stomping once more on the gas and swerving the car to the right, flying down another rundown street with patchy pavement and crumbling sidewalks. Shipping container after shipping container, as well as hastily constructed shacks and disintegrating apartment buildings that could only be described as unfit for inhabitance, flew past their windows in a blur. They were in the sprawling industrial slums of some urban city, on yet another mission for the AVL. Ramsbottom sent them to track and capture a big time villain who ran a crime syndicate that spanned not only that city, but three others in the surrounding area. Between Gru's villainous expertise and Lucy's endless supply of gadgets, tracking the guy down wasn't difficult. The security surrounding his hideout, however, was a different story.

The little blue car car coasted to a stop at the curb of a nameless side street, underneath the amber glow of a streetlight. Their surroundings were darkened in the late hour of the night, and there was a distinct chill to the wet winter's air that seeped through the windows. Lucy turned the car off, silencing the engine and cutting the headlights.

"There," she said breathlessly, "that should keep them off our trail for good."

Gru ran a hand over his head and chuckled. "It's a miracle we got out of dere alive."

Lucy grinned, dancing a little in her seat with glee. "I know, it was _awesome!_" she crowed happily. "There were so many of them! I've never seen so many henchman in my life!" She turned toward him, grabbing his coat sleeves excitedly. "Best. Mission. _Ever!_"

He rose a brow, unable to keep the smile off his face at her contagious joy. "You really are crazy, aren't you?" he asked.

"Oh, come on," she teased, "like you didn't have fun. I heard you laughing the whole time we were running out of the compound."

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled good-naturedly, waving a hand. "How long are we going to stay here, anyway?"

"I don't know," she said, taking a quick glance around at where they were parked. "I mean, this part of town is huge. They'll probably be out looking for a while. I say we play it safe and stick here for at least a couple hours."

He shot her a surprised look. "Play it safe? Dat's new. Usually your furst choice is doing sometheeng totally and completely life threatening."

"Hush you," she replied, and pulled out her cellphone, her fingers already flying across the keyboard. "I need to contact Ramsbottom and let him know what's going on so he doesn't worry. The last thing we need is AVL backup teams to swarm this place looking for us and alert the baddies to where we are."

"Wonderful," he sighed, rubbing his forehead, "two hours spent in a car in the slums."

"Oh, it's not that bad." She pressed send, then slipped the phone back into her coat pocket. "I mean, look on the bright side, those guys aren't trying to kill us anymore!"

"Yeah, but what are we going to do for two hours?"

"Well . . ." she trailed off. He looked over, curious at the change in tone her voice had taken. She met his gaze immediately, a smirk curving her lips and her eyes half-lidded. "We could always just make out."

"Ah, oka – wait, w-what?" He felt the heat rise to his cheeks, and cursed himself for being so easy to react.

"Oh, come on Gru," she teased lightly, "why not? We have time to kill, and I don't know about you, but these missions always give me a bit of a _buzz._" He looked down, at a loss for words and feeling a bit more nervous than he'd like to admit. "Gru." Her soft voice prompted him to glance up again, where he found concern and sympathy in her face. "Sweetheart, you promised me you'd try."

Of course, Gru knew, she was referring to their conversation a month prior, when she uncovered his anxiety and fear over physical touch. It had been tough to confront, but eventually he promised her that he would try harder to overcome the unfortunate circumstances of his past, as long as she was there with him. They'd done pretty well with progress since then. Lucy was insistent, but careful not to verge on pushy, about touching him and encouraging him to initiate physical contact as well. He'd come fairly far from where he was, and even further from where he was when they first met.

However, now, just as it always was, he _wanted_ to get close to her, but the thought still scared him and made him want to run. Lucy knew how difficult this could be for him, and she was continuously patient - he knew he could never express just how grateful he was to her for that.

"I know, I know," he replied. "I just . . . "

"Have you ever made out in a car before?" she asked. She wasn't judgmental in her question, but curious. That was another thing he appreciated about her – she didn't judge. And to an ex-villain with a very shady past, more emotional issues than Vogue, and three adopted girls, that meant everything.

He chuckled, shaking his head. "No, I can't say dat I have. Besides, most cars are like dese, too small."

"Oh!" She threw up her hands, looking as if an idea just occurred to her. "I have something for that!" Her hands flitted across the dashboard, looking over a multitude of buttons and switches before finding one and pressing it. Immediately, the floor beneath them began to rumble and move with the grinding of gears and levers. The right and left cushions of the backseat retracted into the trunk, and the pair of agents began to move as their seats were maneuvered backward. They suddenly stopped, their chairs filling the empty slots from the now vanished backseat. They settled in place, metal clasps and fasteners attaching to the bottom and backs of their chairs and securing them into place. Between them, the remaining middle section of the backseat served to connect the two chairs seamlessly. Gru looked around, struck by how much roomier the car seemed now that the front section was completely vacant save for the dashboard.

He blinked. "Hm. I don't theenk I want to know why dat is a built-in function."

She shrugged. "No clue." She slid closer, a sly smile on her face. "But hey, at least it came in handy, right?" He returned the smile, but was too distracted by how close she was getting to actually answer. Her hand found his, and she slipped her fingers between his. He grasped her hand in return, squeezing lightly. She studied his face for a moment, trying to gauge what he was thinking, before leaning in closer and closing her eyes. He copied her actions, leaning closer and trying to still the flutter in his chest when suddenly a bright flood of white light washed over the cabin of the car, startling its occupants. Gru reacted on instinct, pulling her closer and ducking the two of them down until they were no longer in view from the street. The light neared with the crunch of tires on asphalt, and just as soon as the car came, it went. Gru sat up, peering out the back windshield to catch a glimpse of the receding car.

"We're okay," he said, relieved. "It wasn't one of the henchman's cars. Just a ceeveelian." He turned, meaning to see if Lucy was okay, when suddenly she was so much closer, pressing her lips against his. His noise of suprise was muffled by her mouth, but he soon settled into the kiss, content in the moment. He moved his hands to rest lightly on her waist, and she hummed lightly to encourage his actions. She gripped his upper arms and squeezed, holding there. A moment passed, and she continued to move, her hands slipping up his shoulders and slowly crossing behind his head. Inwardly, she celebrated. He didn't seem to be anxious or scared at anything up to this point, which to her was fantastic. She liked him far too much to stay away from him, but at the same time she didn't want to frighten him off by pushing too far or coming on too strong. But, as his grip tightened on her waist slightly, his breath warm on her cheeks and his fingertips brushing her spine, she knew that she wanted to push his boundaries tonight.

Her fingers brushed back down, trailing along the fabric of the scarf wrapped around his neck. She gripped the scarf where it fell over the lapels of his jacket and tugged firmly, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. His fingertips pressed into her skin and his shoulders hitched, his breath faltering. She made a mental note of that, wanting to explore which of her actions prompted how he reacted and how much. She broke away for a moment, still hovering just a hair's breadth away.

"You okay, hun?" she asked.

"Y-Yeah," he stammered. She soothed over the scarf, still keeping her grip on him. Yet when she didn't move forward to continue the kiss, he realized she wanted him to. His lidded eyes took in the challenging little smile on her face and he found it easier to shove down his nerves and sweep a hand up her back, tangling his fingers in her hair and pulling her forward to meet him.

"Good," she cooed, before she melted once more into the kiss. Her hands flew to his shoulders, pushing back on them until he complied, shifting down the seat until his back hit the wall of the car. The second he made contact with the firm, unforgiving plastic and metal, she could tell his nerves were set on edge. He didn't like being cornered, especially when he's vulnerable – and in this situation, confronting these fears and with so little control, she would imagine he felt very, very vulnerable.

Which is why she continued to push even further.

She swung a leg over his knee, straddling his leg and slipping even closer. She moved gradually and deliberately, as one would with a wild, cornered animal – and at this point, that's almost what he was. He exhaled sharply at her movement, his shoulders tensing under her hands. Slowly, she took one of the ends of his scarf and pulled, unwinding it from his neck. The process was slow, teasing, and she almost giggled at the satisfaction it brought her to have him so on edge, yet completely willing. Finally, it slipped away and she dropped it to the side. She wasted no time in moving on, her fingers grabbing his coat's zipper tag at the base of his throat and tugging down. He made a startled noise, his hand shooting out and grasping her wrist, not tightly, but enough to make her stop. He abruptly broke away from their kiss and looked at her, his eyes filled with both fear and desire. A red hue crept across his cheeks, proclaiming his astonished embarrassment.

"L-Lucy . . ." he breathed.

"It's okay," she murmured, kissing his cheek softly. He flinched at the small movement before relaxing slightly. She could tell he was fighting off his fight-or-flight instinct, an impulse that had no doubt saved him from the cruelties of others more than once when he was younger. "Don't worry, Gru. I promise I won't hurt you. Do you trust me?"

Gru hesitated - not because he didn't trust her, but because he was so utterly confused. For his whole life he had avoided people, not trusting a single one to get close to him. From his experience with humanity, people only brought pain and rejection. However, when his daughters came into his life, his worldview was soundly shaken. What he knew and what he _thought_ he knew were all suddenly thrown into question. He began to wonder, if he could trust those little angels enough to adopt them, perhaps people weren't so terrible after all. Then, life went on, and a year later he found Lucy – and that's when everything became so wonderfully terrifying.

With Lucy, everything was different. He could be around her, be close to her, and even though it sometimes scared him, she made him feel so warm and loved. There was a comfort with her that he never felt with anyone else. The whole dating thing was nerve-wracking, yes, but somehow it was completely worth it, just to be near her.

But why? Why was she so different from everyone else? Why did he need so strongly to make her happy, to see her smile? He was moving so far from his comfort zone, addressing feelings and issues he'd long since buried, all for her – and he had no clue why.

And yet here she was, quite literally peeling away his defensive layers, and Gru found himself wanting nothing more than for her to keep going.

"I trust you," he answered."More dan anyone."

Lucy smiled, warm and sincere, and something inside him soared at the way she looked at him He let go of her wrist and she continued with his jacket, the noise of the zipper and their hushed breathing the only sounds in the car. When she was done, she pushed the coat from his shoulders and down his arms. Gru helped her, tugging his arms from the sleeves and throwing the jacket to the floor. His hands went to the buttons over the overcoat she wore almost of their own accord. He paused, glancing up at her questioningly, and she nodded encouragingly. He continued, his fingers fumbling slightly with the buttons, but eventually loosening each one down her side until she too shrugged her coat off and to the floor. Immediately, Lucy reached for him, her hands fisting in his sweater, pulling him flush against her. He jumped at the contact, but followed, meeting her in a fierce kiss. His hands settled on her waist, one trailing up to cautiously stroke her ribs. She made a pleased noise and giggled softly. She couldn't believe how well this was going. Her heart beat an exalting tattoo against her ribcage, and she couldn't help but smile against his lips. She would stay like this the whole night if she could, wrapped in his arms and sharing in their affections.

As her hands moved to the back of his neck to clutch there like she never wanted to leave, Gru fought with himself. His fear still rioted in the back of his mind, provoking him and telling him to stop, leave, _run_ as far as he could. But his heart told him otherwise. It told him to stay and enjoy the welcoming company of an amazing woman that he should be so thankful to call his. It was a constant battle, shoving down his fear and convincing himself that it was okay, that he had nothing to fear from her, and that it was alright to enjoy this. He knew it would be difficult to adjust to this type of affection, but thankfully it was getting easier every day with each kiss and touch.

She moved away, breaking the kiss gently. He made a small noise of disappointment, opening his eyes and finding her brilliant green ones. She smirked knowingly and he rose a brow. "What?" he prompted.

"You're thinking something," she replied, resting her forehead against his. "What is it?"

His arms looped around her waist comfortably. "Just how fortunate I am to have someone like you," he said.

She ran her fingers soothingly over the nape of his neck, grinning as he shivered. "You're not the only lucky one."

"No, but not many can say dey have a woman as wonderful and patient as you."

"Mm, flattery will get you everywhere, sweetheart," she whispered, pressing a kiss just beside his ear. He shuddered and held her closer.

"I – I just am so grateful to have you," he murmured sincerely. "You are the furst person who has ever made me really want sometheeng like dis."

"What do you mean?"

He tucked his face into the nook of her neck, breathing deep and catching the floral scent of her shampoo. He found it very difficult to look her in the eye when he admitted these types of things. "I built dese . . . dese walls around myself a long time ago," he began softly. "After what happened to me, I thought dey would finally protect me from being hurt. But, I deedn't realize how . . . alone I had become, until I met you. I had become so separated from the wurld dat I forgot what it felt like to have someone care about me. You reminded me how _amazing_ and _terrifying_ it is to be dis close to someone, and how much warmth and happeeness it can bring. Even though it scares me, I want to be near you. And maybe wanting dat, and having dose feelings again, scares me even more."

She leaned back, ducking down and trying to glimpse his face. He looked at her, hesitance lining his expression. "But?" she asked, sensing there was more.

"But . . . even if it does scare me, I want dis more dan I want anytheeng else. As long as it's what you want, too."

She couldn't help the adoring smile that spread across her face at his sweet words. She doubted he was even aware of how romantic he could be without even trying. "Of course it's what I want," she whispered. "Like I said before, I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying right here, with you."

He smiled, a hope blossoming in his chest that inspired him to move forward, capturing her in a sound, loving kiss. Gru relished in the feeling of Lucy's lips, warm and insistent on his. But before they could become swept up in each other once more, a small, chirping sound began to ring from somewhere on the floor. Gru frowned, looking around the cabin of the car.

"What is dat?"

Lucy groaned, rolling her eyes. She leaned over, fumbling for her coat before managing to reach into the pocket. She pulled out her phone and glanced at the display, sighing irritably. "It's Ramsbottom."

"I thought you already told him what was going on?" Gru questioned.

She stared at the display, her thumb brushing over the answer button. "I did, but he must have questions about something."

"Are you going to answer it?" he asked, as the cheery ringing continued on. She considered the phone for a moment, then smiled.

"We have another hour left," she hinted. Without a second thought, she tossed the phone over her shoulder. "I think Ramsbottom and the AVL can wait until then."

With that, she sunk back into his arms, giggling. Yep, she thought – best mission _ever._

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**Alright, so there it is! And yes, I totally went with the whole somewhat cliche 'make out in the car after escaping the baddies' scenario. It might be cheesy, but oh well, sue me, lol.**

**While his personal space/physical contact issues will be something Gru will always struggle with in some capacity, I'd like to think that after a few months of dating Lucy and working on it with her, it would become much easier to handle. Even after a month or so, like in the chapter, he would show a lot of improvement (and Lucy would be so proud of him). But, like yall have read in previous chapters, once they are further into their relationship - like a year or so - it's barely an issue.**

**Anyway, I hope yall enjoyed it! Review, please!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey guys! So here's another one, and it's actually out relatively fast! Yay! So, this chapter is on a pretty common topic in the fandom - what happens when the girls are older? It was a bit difficult to start out, but once I got the idea of where I wanted it to go and how it would happen, it came together fairly easy. **

**A quick side note before yall read this: I thought I saw the girls' 'official' ages on the DM Wikia before, but I checked again and they weren't there, so I had to just go with my own headcanon. In the second movie, I think Margo is around 12 years old, Edith is 9, and Agnes is 7.**

**This chapter takes place six years after the second movie - so in my headcanon, seven years after Gru adopts the girls (because I think there's a year timespan between the first and second movie) and four years after Gru and Lucy are married (because they dated for two years before getting married.) I hope the math adds up correctly, because it's 1 A.M. and I can't do math right now. If it doesn't, apologies - let me know and I'll fix it.**

**So, in this chapter, a now eighteen-year-old Margo is going out on a date, and Gru realizes just how grown up his girls have become. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

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"I don't like dis," Gru grumbled, tucking his hands behind his back. "I don't like dis at all."

"Honey, stop worrying," Lucy soothed, watching as her husband began to pace their bedroom. "It's going to be fine."

"Oh no, no, no," he refused, shaking his head. "It will not be 'fine'. Dis is terrible. Dis is a . . . a disaster!"

She rolled her eyes. "Sweetheart, it's not the end of the world if Margo goes on a _date_. It's not like this is her first time going out with a boy!"

"Dat doesn't matter!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "She shouldn't be going at all. I said dat from the beginning, but did you leesten to me? No!"

"She's eighteen, Gru. Plenty old enough to be dating. Heck, I started dating when I was fifteen!"

"I don't care! She could be thirty and I would steell say no," he insisted, stomping a foot angrily. "No dates, no dateeng, and no boyfriends!"

Lucy only smiled, standing from her spot in the bed and crossing the room to stand next to him. They'd been married long enough that she knew when Gru was actually angry, and when he was just using anger as a cover for other emotions he didn't want to show. She laid a hand on his shoulder, warm and comforting. "You know as well as I do that she's old enough to make her own decisions now. We can't tell her what to do anymore."

He frowned and crossed his arms stubbornly. "I am her father, I can always tell her what to do," he replied.

"Mom, Dad!" An impatient voice rang from downstairs, grabbing the attention of the two adults. Gru opened their bedroom door and walked out into the hall to find the source of the commotion. Edith stood at the base of the stairs, her arms crossed and her ever-present hat pulled over her eyes. At fifteen years old, Edith was no longer the little girl Gru remembered. She was still rambunctious and loud, that was certain – but now she was tall enough to measure up to the middle of her dad's chest, and her blonde hair was no longer shoved messily under her hat, but sticking out in rather spiky pieces. Pink was still her primary color of choice, but between skinny jeans and high top shoes, her clothes were much different than they used to be.

"What is it keetten?" he called.

"Margo is hogging the bathroom!" Edith complained. "She's taking forever to get ready for her stupid date."

"It is not stupid!" came her sister's muffled reply from behind the closed bathroom door.

"Is too!" she retorted. "And if you keep taking so long, you'll miss your ride with your boyfriend."

Gru twitched, quick to angrily clarify, "He is not her boyfriend!"

Lucy sidled up next to Gru, a playful smile on her face. "Careful, Edith. Next thing you know, that'll be you in the bathroom getting ready for a date."

Gru shot a look at her, a desperate expression on his face. "Lucy! You are not helping," he muttered. "Besides, Edith is too young for any dates."

Their daughter made a face, screwing her nose up and sticking out her tongue. "Dates? Gross. No thanks, Mom. Besides, most of the guys in my class are either dumb or too scared of me."

"And dat's how it should be," Gru praised, a proud smile on his face. "Good work, keetten."

Lucy's hand wrapped around his and tugged as she emerged from the bedroom and headed toward the stairs. "Come on, let's wait downstairs for Margo with the girls."

Gru followed begrudgingly. "I steell don't theenk dis is a good idea."

"I know," she replied lightly, "but good idea or not, you're going to be there to support our daughter." They reached the bottom of their stairs and trailed into the living room, Gru and Lucy sitting on the alligator couch and Edith following and plopping herself down into the rhinoceros chair.

Agnes emerged from the kitchen, cellphone in hand and thumbs flying across the keys. "What's going on in here?" she asked. Gru glanced at his youngest and felt a pang of sadness overcome him. Even his little girl wasn't so little anymore. She was nearly as tall as Edith, and at thirteen years old her childish features had grown into that of a young woman. She was a teenager now, a fact that worried Gru far more than he would like to admit. Gone were the ponytail and overalls, replaced by colorful, girly skirts and blouses, her hair trailing in long waves down her back.

"We're waiting for Margo to go on her date," Edith answered.

A wide smile spread across Agnes' face and she bounced in place. "I forgot about that! Ooh, I bet Margo's going to look so pretty!" She skipped over to the sofa (some things never change, a fact for which Gru was very thankful) and sat next to Lucy, who wrapped a loving arm around her shoulders. "I can't wait 'til I'm old enough to start dating."

Gru shook his head, a pained expression crossing his face at the idea of his youngest going out with some awful boy. "No, no, you are _never_ dateeng," he insisted. "Never, ever, ever. Remember what I told you before? No growing up. You're not allowed to."

"Daaaad," Agnes giggled.

He smiled in return, trying to ignore just how much he wished that was true. It had been seven years since he adopted his daughters, six since he had met Lucy, and four since he had gotten married – and it felt like those years had flown by in the blink of an eye. It seemed like only yesterday that he was driving the girls to dance classes, taking Agnes to her first day of kindergarten, playing tea party and reading bedtime stories. It was hard to believe how much they had grown – whenever he looked at them he still half-expected to see the little girls he first adopted. It wasn't that he wasn't proud of them – he was. He was so incredibly proud of his little - or not so little - girls and all they had accomplished. Agnes was fast becoming the best actress in her theater class, and still managed to be the sweetest person Gru had ever met. Edith had earned black belts in Judo, Tae Kwon Do and Karate, and was a star athlete on the high school's softball team. Margo was an honor roll student in the running to be named valedictorian of her graduating class, and she was accepted into one of the most prestigious colleges in the state. His girls had done so much in six years that he could hardly believe it.

But, seeing them grow up was difficult. They were very capable young women, and it seemed they needed him less and less every day. Of course, he and Lucy raised them to be strong people, but that didn't mean he wanted to feel like they didn't need him anymore. And now he had to deal with things like proms, and boys, and dating and 'girl problems', areas that he had absolutely no experience or knowledge in. Lucy did though, and as the years passed and the girls grew older, it seemed like she knew what was going on more than he did. Gru had a house full of women, and it was all he could do to try and keep his head above water.

Down the hall, the bathroom door finally creaked open and Margo shyly stepped out toward her family. Gru, hearing delighted gasps from his wife and Agnes, looked up and set his eyes on his eldest. She stood in the hall, hands tucked in front of herself, a smile on her face. Margo was much taller than she was six years ago, easily reaching to the height of Gru's shoulder. Her hair was in curls, pinned up into an elegant bun. She was dressed up quite nicely for the date - a black button up shirt with a casual red blazer, paired with dark skinny jeans and delicate, black heels. Sparkly earrings dangled from her ears, and light make-up emphasized her beautiful features. Overall, she looked far too grown up and much too mature for Gru to process.

"Oh, honey, you look wonderful!" Lucy exclaimed warmly.

"Yeah Margo," Agnes enthused, "you look really, really pretty!"

Edith snorted. "Yeah, at least we know what took you so long."

Margo beamed, looking absolutely thrilled with the response. "Thanks you guys." However, when Gru didn't say anything, Margo's eyes fell to him, curious and confused. "What do you think, Dad?" she prompted.

Gru looked at her, choking back a million different thoughts that sprang to mind, like, 'You are not wearing dose heels, you go and change right now!' or, 'Why are you wearing dat lipstick! You don't have to impress some stupid boy.' Instead, he smiled unsteadily and said, "You look beautiful, sweetheart."

She smiled again, ducking her head down at the compliment. "Thanks, dad."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, a cheery two-tone that echoed through the house. Margo brightened, shouldering the small black purse she carried. "That must be him!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, wonderful," Gru intoned. He stood, casually grabbing his heavy metal mace from the floor as he did. "Let's go meet dis boy." He took a few steps forward, adjusting his grip on the handle.

"Gru!" Lucy jumped up and placed a hand on his chest to stop him. "Quit it," she ordered, shooting him a withering glare. "Margo, sweetie," she said, looking over to her eldest, "go ahead and answer the door, but don't leave yet. We'll only be a few minutes." Margo nodded, turning to get the door, while Lucy glanced back to her husband and grabbed his arm. "You, me, kitchen - now." With that, she yanked him along behind her, dragging him across to the next room. They reached the kitchen, stopping at the counter, when Lucy released his arm and turned to face him, hands on her hips.

". . . What?" Gru exclaimed.

"Drop the medieval weaponry," she commanded. He eyed the mace still in his hand before sighing and tossing it down, the impact making a thundering _thunk_ on the floor. With that done, her expression softened and she took a step closer.

"Gru, what are you doing?" she asked.

"What? I just thought I would say hello to the punk dat will be dateeng my daughter."

"And scare him off? I don't think so."

"What, me?" he asked, adopting an offended tone. "I would never."

"Remember the first few guys that tried to take Margo out? You sicced Kyle on them, and he chased them screaming down the street. They were so scared they never came back."

Gru chuckled darkly at the memory. "Ah, yes. Kyle is such a good guard dog - uh, theeng."

She whacked him lightly on the shoulder, smiling despite herself. "You're not supposed to scare off her dates! You're supposed to be nice to them!"

He scoffed. "I'm her dad, it is my job to scare off boys."

"Why are you so freaked out about this?" she asked.

"Freaked out? I'm not freaked out," he replied, looking away nervously. "Dat's . . . dat's bonkers. Why would I be freaked out?"

Lucy eyed him, a knowing smile on her lips. "I think I know what this is about," she sing-songed. She tip-toed behind him, wrapping her arms around his middle and leaning on his back, her head resting on his shoulder. "You're worried about Margo. She's all grown up now, going on dates, about to graduate high school and head off to college –"

"Ugh, don't remind me," he groaned.

"You think she's growing up too fast and that soon, you're going to lose her." He didn't respond, but just covered her hands with his. "And it's true, she is growing up fast, but I can promise you one thing."

"What's dat?"

"No matter how old Margo gets, she will _always_ be your little girl." Lucy nestled her head into the side his neck, and he squeezed her hands lovingly. "She loves you so much. She absolutely adores you, and she always will. But, if you don't back off and stop being so overprotective, you'll suffocate her and she'll want to leave even faster. She's going to be packing up and moving out in a matter of months, and I don't know about you, but I don't want that day to come any sooner than it already is."

He shook his head, sighing. "No, I don't want dat either. I just . . . she's our daughter. I-I don't want her to leave. If she leaves, I can't protect her. I just want to keep her safe."

Lucy gently slipped out of his grasp, coming around him to take his hands in hers. "I know, baby," she replied wistfully, "I want her to be safe, too. But we have to trust her. We raised her to be a smart, strong girl, and I think she'll make the right decisions."

"I know," he sighed. "Soon, she'll be all grown up, living in her own house, haveeng a family . . ." He frowned, looking away mournfully. "It's been seven years seence I adopted the gurls. If dat time has passed dis quickly, how fast will the next five years be? Or ten years? It won't be too much longer before even Agnes is moveeng out. And den what? What will I do when all my keettens are gone?"

Her hands tightened around his, warm and comforting. "Then you can live happily knowing you gave three girls a wonderful home and a wonderful childhood, with all the knowledge they need to go out and live happy lives of their own."

A small smile crept across Gru's face, and he breathed a light chuckled, meeting her eyes. "How do you do dat?" he asked.

"Do what?"

"Make everytheeng seem so much better in a matter of a few words."

Lucy grinned. "That is a highly classified AVL secret, and if I told you, I'd have to kill you."

He rolled his eyes with a snort of laughter, before bringing her hands up and pressing a kiss to them. "Whatever you say," he murmured.

"So," she said cheerfully, "do you think you can be nice while we're meeting Margo's date, or do I have to hide the weaponry?"

Gru smirked. "Fine, fine. I'll be nice."

"Good. And who knows? Maybe he's a sweet boy," she mused, taking Gru's hand and heading for the front hall.

"He could be the nicest kid in the wurld, but he so much as looks at Margo wrong, I will freeze him and stick him in the lab for the next year," Gru threatened.

Lucy shushed him as they stepped out into the hall, where Margo and her date stood by the front door. They looked up and the boy smiled, stepping forward. He was tall, a few good inches taller than Margo, with softly curled, short brown hair, tan skin and green eyes. He was dressed nicely, a simple button down shirt and jeans.

"Hi, I'm Mark. You must be Mr. and Mrs. Gru. It's nice to meet you." He stuck a hand out, and Gru looked at it distastefully before Lucy nudged him hard in the ribs. He sighed, then shook the boy's hand briefly.

"Hello . . . _Mark_," he said. He straightened to his full height, eyeing the boy intimidatingly. "I understand you are takeeng my daughter out?"

"Uh, y-yeah," Mark answered. "Just a dinner and a movie, sir."

Sensing that the conversation was about to take a violent turn, Lucy jumped in, smiling brightly. "How exciting! Well, we won't keep you kids any longer. Go, have fun!"

"But not too much fun," Gru amended, pointing at Mark firmly.

"Thanks Mom and Dad! I'll see you guys later." Margo waved, smiling as she and her date made for the door.

"Keep your phone on," Gru instructed. "And be home by eleven thirty."

"I will," she promised.

"And I mean _by_ eleven thirty!" he repeated emphatically.

Margo nodded. "U-huh." Her date opened the door and held it for her.

"And you have your mother's leepstick taser in your purse, just in case." At that, Mark stiffened, his eyes going wide. Inwardly, Gru laughed - his comment had the desired effect.

Margo rolled her eyes, giggling lightly before addressing her date. "Mark, why don't you go ahead and get in the car," she suggested, waving the boy off. "I'll be out in a bit." Mark hesitated before nodding, stepping outside. His nervous glance didn't leave Gru for a moment.

Suddenly, Margo ran to Gru, throwing her arms around his neck in a hug and pressing a kiss to his cheek. Pulling back, she smiled warmly. "Don't worry, Dad," she said, "I'll be okay." Looking at her, he found lying behind her eyes the wisdom she'd always possessed, a wisdom far beyond her years. Somehow, she knew exactly what he was worried about and why. And she understood. He saw no frustration or annoyance in her face, but simply love and acceptance. He smiled faintly and nodded, kissing her on the forehead.

"I know, keetten."

She turned to Lucy and quickly hugged and kissed her as well before trailing back down the hall. "Bye, love you guys!" With a small wave, she slipped through the front door and shut it behind her, gone for the night.

The two parents sighed, staring at the door for a moment. In the background, they could hear Agnes and Edith giggling and whispering to each other about Margo and Mark.

"Well, that went better than expected," Lucy commented happily.

"I steell theenk I should've freeze-rayed the punk," Gru replied, crossing his arms across his chest.

"We'll see how the date goes," she comprised, patting his shoulder. "If he breaks her heart, go for it."

"Deel."

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**Okay, so there it is!**

**I definitely think that Gru will always be an overprotective worrywart of a dad who just wants what's best for his kids. Thankfully, he has Lucy there to reel him in whenever he gets crazy. The poor guy will have to go through the same trials three times for each girl, though, and every time it'll break his heart. First date, first boyfriend, first break-up, high school graduation, moving out, college, etc. They're growing up, and there's not a thing he can do to stop it.**

**As for the girls, I didn't want to change their personalities too much as they got older because I think what you see in the movie is pretty much the essence of who they are. Edith will always be an adventurous, rough-and-tumble person, Margo will always be smart and loving, and Agnes will always have that sweetness and that sense of innocence to her.**

**Anyway, I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank yall for your reviews! I really appreciate every one of them. Oh, and something pretty cool - this chapter officially makes this fic the longest I've done! Though, I'm not sure if it counts when they're all just oneshots, lol. **

**Anyway, I'm not quite sure why I wanted to write this topic, but I just did. This is set a year-ish into Gru and Lucy's marriage. ****Gru comes home and finds that not everything is as he left it. Something is very, very wrong. I hope yall enjoy it! Review, please!**

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When Gru got home that day, the first thing he noticed was that the house was _quiet_.

Before he adopted his girls, his house was always quiet. He had preferred it that way. But now, with three growing girls, a wife and an army of minions, the last thing one would describe his house as was quiet. And, he had to admit, he had come to enjoy the noise. It was a constant reminder of the life that had come to fill the home. Giggling, screaming, shouting, things breaking, music playing - there was always some small chaos going on somewhere.

But, as he stepped through the door and pocketed his keys, he couldn't hear a thing. The silence was disconcerting.

"I'm home!" he called, shutting the door behind him. He walked further down the hallway, listening, but there was no response. "Lucy? Gurls?" He scanned his surroundings. It was mid-afternoon, but house seemed far too dim for the time of day. A small shaft of white light from the window in the door shone down the hallway, providing the only illumination that he could see. Combined with the silence, the house felt almost eerie in comparison to the vibrancy and life it usually contained. A small tickle of worry crept unwittingly up the back of Gru's throat, and he called out again.

"Gurls? Where are you?" He wandered into the kitchen, noting how the darkness somehow persisted despite the large, open window on the back wall. He rounded the counter, passing the barstools and trailing near the table.

Plates and bowls from that morning's breakfast were still out, remnants of leftover pancakes and cereal still stuck on them. He frowned – it was strange, because when he left after breakfast he remembered asking Lucy to help the girls do the dishes, and they were usually so good about it. And even if they forgot, one of the minions would eventually see the mess and clean it up for them.

He stepped away from the table, aware of the nagging feeling tugging at the back of his mind telling him that _something_ was off - he just had no idea what it was. He detoured to the back door, opening it and poking his head outside. The daylight seemed even brighter and harsher than before compare to the darkness in the house, and he winced at the sudden intrusion as his eyes adjusted. One quick look around the backyard yielded nothing. The toys were exactly where the girls left them, their playhouse was vacant, and not a soul could be seen.

"Gurls! Lucy!" Gru hollered, just for good measure. No answer. He shook his head, ducking back into the house.

He was beginning to feel truly worried. He knew Lucy wouldn't have taken the girls somewhere without calling him first to check in. They both liked to know where the other was, and who had the kids whenever they weren't together – they quickly learned that when you have three rambunctious little girls that tend to get into trouble, it's just safer that way.

There was a chance they were in the lab, but for safety reasons, Gru told them he'd prefer they not go down there without him. With all the weapons and chemicals lying around, something could go very wrong very quickly. But, if the girls were in his lab, there was one easy way to check without going all the way down there. One of his minions should know – they spent most of their time working in the lab anyway. Funny, though, that he hadn't seen a single one yet, when the house was quite often literally swarming with them. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket, briefly considering calling Lucy instead before deciding against it and speed-dialing Stuart. No need to worry his wife when she could be only a floor beneath him.

He held the phone to his ear and absently let his legs carry him from the kitchen to the living room. However, before the second ring could sound, he came upon something that stopped him, horrified, in his tracks.

His phone fell forgotten to the floor as he took in the sight before him. The living room was absolutely destroyed. It was as if someone had gone through and ransacked the entire room – or, Gru realized, a cold pit of fear knotting his stomach – as if the room was trashed during a struggle – a fight between attacker and victim. Sofa cushions were thrown across the room, jagged cuts ripping through the fabric and exposing the stuffing inside. The side tables had been shattered, and wooden splinters were scattered across the floor among shards of broken glass. Even the curtains had been ripped from their rungs, hanging in long tatters over the windows. Family portraits that had lined the fireplace mantel were thrown to the ground, the photographs ripped into pieces - seemingly the only purposeful action in the whirlwind of chaos.

For a long moment, all Gru could do was stand there, his breath catching in his throat and his heart hammering painfully against his ribs. Suddenly, his mind raced to catch up with his body and he threw himself forward, running through the mess to search for _anything_, any clues to what might have happened. Clarity came rushing to him in a sickening whirlwind; he couldn't find his wife or his daughters because they _weren't there_. Someone had taken them from him.

Panic roared in his mind. Someone broke into his home, a stranger who came to do god-knows-what with his family, and now they were _gone_. But who? Who in the world would do this? Gru had enemies as both a villain and an agent, true, but none stupid enough to do something as blatantly vicious as this. No, this was a cold, calculated act from someone with a vendetta and nothing to lose. From the looks of the room, the struggle was violent. There was a big possibility someone had been injured in the fight, but he could only pray that it wasn't Lucy or any of his daughters.

His family . . . Gru had no way of knowing what happened or where they were, and it absolutely terrified him. He had just gotten his life together, and now they'd been ripped from his arms. Hot tears burned at the back of his eyes as horrible scenarios raced through his mind. What if he would never see his family again? What if they were gone forever? What if they were – he choked, not able to even finish the thought. No, he thought, he had to concentrate, he had to keep looking. He was no use to his family as a crying, emotional wreck.

Gru could see remnants of some of the girls' toys strewn about the wreckage, most of it damaged. It was almost surreal, seeing such terrible destruction in a room that once held so much happiness. Something soft beneath the pressure of his foot made him pause and look down. There, lying at his feet, dirtied and torn, was Agnes' beloved stuffed unicorn doll. Gru reached down, but hesitated in the movement, not sure he could bear to touch it until he knew his little girl was safe and in his arms. He stepped backward, casting his eyes about wildly.

"There has to be sometheeng," he muttered desperately. "Please - a clue, a message, _anytheeng!_ – "

And then, something out of the corner of his eye seemed to scream out at him, capturing his attention. The fireplace. He turned and stumbled closer, realizing that something was hanging there. There, nailed in the middle of the mantelpiece, was a picture of Gru and Lucy's wedding day. The frame was crowded with the bride and groom, their three daughters, Gru's mother and dozens of minions. The picture was tattered and torn, but the thing that drew Gru's attention most was the red that seemed to be bleeding through from the back of the photo. He took the picture down, turning it over quickly in his trembling hands. There, written in a messy scrawl with red marker was a message: _Turn around_.

His heart leapt into his throat, and at that moment, the last thing in the world he wanted to do was obey. He had no idea what laid behind him, and the very thought made his stomach twist in on itself. But, this was the only clue he had at the moment, and if it would help at all to lead him to his family, he wouldn't turn it down. Clutching the photo in his hand, he closed his eyes and steeled himself. He couldn't afford to be afraid anymore. He needed to be strong to find his family – that was all that mattered now.

With a deep, grounding breath, Gru turned and opened his eyes. There, dripping in blood red paint across the entirety of the wall was a message: _They're mine now._ Below it, a large circle with a V inside of it. His stomach dropped.

_Vector's symbol. _

"No - !"

Gru woke with a start, sitting bolt upright in bed and gasping for air. His mind was muddled and for a moment, he didn't know where he was. The last thing he remembered . . .

He looked around him, taking in his surroundings as his panic slowly receded. He was back in his house – his _real_ house – and from how dark it was in the bedroom, it seemed to be in the middle of the night.

The sheets rustled beside him, and a sleepy voice called out to him. "Gru?" A delicate hand landed softly on his shoulder and he jumped at the contact, the fear from his nightmare still fresh in his mind. He turned and saw Lucy sitting up beside him, still half-asleep, her hair mussed from her pillow, her mouth set in a small frown of worry. "Sweetie, are you alright?" she asked. Relief flooded Gru's system.

"Lucy, oh, _thank god,_" he murmured, giving no explanation, only taking her up in his arms and hugging her tightly to his chest. His fingers threaded through her hair, and he was so incredibly thankfully that he could feel her against him, solid and real and alive. He could sense her confusion even as he pressed warm kisses into her hair.

"Gru, what's going on?" she asked, her hands gripping the sides of his shirt softly. She peeked at him with concern in her eyes. "It sounded like you were having a nightmare. Are you okay?"

He nodded slowly. "Y-Yes. I am alright."

"Are you sure? You were moving around an awful lot, and talking in your sleep."

He sighed, slumping back and pulling them both the rest against a propped up pillow. "It was . . . terrible," he breathed shakily. "I dreamt dat I came home and I couldn't find you or the gurls and –"

He paused, his panic resurging suddenly. "The gurls!"

He unwrapped his arms from around Lucy and jumped out of bed, nearly running from their room and into the hall. Logically, he knew the nightmare wasn't real and that his girls weren't in any actual danger. But, his protective instinct kicked into overdrive, and something inside him _needed_ to see them, needed to confirm with his own eyes that his daughters were safe. The sheer panic drove him forward until he reached the door to the girls' bedroom. He hesitated for a moment before reaching for the handle, opening the door as quietly as he could. He stepped halfway inside, looking in the dark for his daughters. There, laying in their beds and softly illuminated by the colorful night lights, were Margo, Edith and Agnes. All three girls were asleep, content and peaceful expressions on their faces. Gru sighed, sagging against the doorframe in relief. His girls were safe.

Lucy crept up next to him, quietly taking her place at his side. "How are they doing?" she whispered.

"Dey're okay," he replied, taking a moment to wrap his arm around her, needing her close.

"What about you?" Lucy asked.

"Better. I just needed to see dem," he said, "to make sure everytheeng was okay." He watched them for one long moment before taking a deep breath and closing the door gently. His eyes flitted to Lucy and he smiled. "I had to make sure you were okay, too."

"Of course I'm okay, silly," she said. "I'm right here."

"I know. It's just - it was different."

"Well, come on," she said, tugging on his arm, "let's go back to bed and you can tell me all about it."

"Okay." He followed her, but paused after a moment. "Are you stayeeng home weeth the gurls tomorrow?"

She stopped and shrugged a shoulder. "Yeah, it's my day off. You know that."

"I theenk . . . I theenk I'm goeeng to stay, too."

Her brows dipped in confusion. "But, you have that big meeting with Ramsbottom and part of the Board tomorrow, don't you? You can't miss that. Ramsbottom would be furious."

He chuckled, shaking his head lightly. "Ehh, I don't theenk it's dat important. Besides, I'd rather spend dat time weeth you, rather dan dose annoyeeng AVL jerks."

"Aww, you're too sweet," she smiled. "But don't blame me if he sticks you on paperwork duty for a week after this." She slid her hand down to his hand, squeezing briefly and then leading him along.

"Ah, I don't theenk he'd have the guts to do it," he replied idly.

Gru shot a glance down the stairwell and let a very familiar, dark and evil expression overcome him for just that moment. He remembered everything that in his dream, and he knew just what lengths he'd go to to prevent it from ever happening. He wasn't about to take a chance that his dream might've been a premonition.

"Кроме того, если, что мало панк действительно возвращается, я хочу быть здесь, чтобы убить его*," he muttered darkly.

Lucy glanced over her shoulder. "What was that, hun?"

His eyes shot back to her, all traces of vengefulness gone. "Oh, notheeng, notheeng."

* * *

**Okay, so that's my attempt at doing something somewhat scary, but not so over the top that it leaves the realm of believability for the movieverse.**

**I really don't know why I decided to do this one. I suppose I just like to torment Gru sometimes, hahaha. But, I do think that Gru is secretly afraid for his family's safety. He probably made a lot of enemies by ****'switching sides' and ****working with the AVL, not to mention all the rivals he had when he was a big-time villain. He realizes that there is a good chance that they'll be hurt because of him, or maybe even worse. And that scares him. He'd do anything to protect his family, no matter what. So I guess this explores that fear and his reaction to it. It was a bit shorter than usual, but I think the length is still pretty suiting.**

**And yes, I used Russian again! I hope it translates well, because I don't speak Russian. I just used Google translate, lol. **

***Кроме того, если, что мало панк действительно возвращается, я хочу быть здесь, чтобы убить его = Besides, if that little punk does come back, I want to be here to kill him.**

**Anyway, I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey guys! It's been a little while since my last update, huh? Don't worry, I still love Grucy and I still love this fic! I just kinda ran out of steam/inspiration for a little while. Anyway, I'm glad yall liked the last chapter! I didn't expect it to freak so many of you out, lol.**

**So this is set a few weeks after Gru Lucy's one-year dating anniversary. Lucy gets her house all packed up for moving day - the day she becomes a fixed attachment of the Gru household. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

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Today was the day.

Today was when Lucy and Gru finally moved in together.

Lucy could hardly believe it herself, even as she loaded her first box of stuff into the small moving van. Of course, she wasn't moving all by herself. Gru had sent a small army of minions ahead to her apartment to help – he would come with the girls as soon as he picked them up from school that day. The minions wanted to start helping immediately, but Lucy insisted she needed to pack the very first and very last box herself. Something about it was symbolic to her of ending the latest chapter in her life and opening a brand new one - one that she hoped was every bit as exciting and happy as the last, if not more so.

She smiled, staying to take in the moment before hopping out of the van and nodding to the line of minions queued up, each holding a box to pack. "Alright, guys," she said, crossing her arms with a smile, "let's load 'em up!"

Somewhere in the line a minion cheered and blew a party horn, and like clockwork, they began filing in and loading the boxes. The minion named Stuart stood to the side, directing his fellow workers on how and where to put each box. Occasionally, another minion would disagree with Stuart and then suddenly they were slapping at each other and yelling angrily in their gibberish language. Lucy watched for a moment, endlessly amused by their antics, before turning to go back into her apartment and grab another box.

There was an excited buzzing feeling in her head as she stepped through her door, and she couldn't help but grin widely. She was moving in with _Gru!_ The wonderful man she called her boyfriend, and his three perfect little girls. She and Gru had been dating for a year now, so she knew it was the logical next step, but she had never really given it much serious thought before. With Gru, things happened in their own time, even if it took a bit longer than normal - which Lucy had no problem with; she was a fairly patient person, but especially so for him. She knew she could wait as long as was needed. So when he suggested the idea to her shortly after their year-anniversary, she was shocked, but endlessly pleased.

She could still remember what he said those few short weeks ago.

_"Hey, Lucy?" _

_She looked up from the newspaper she was reading, the early morning light streaming through the window and painting the kitchen a sunny gold. The girls were still asleep, and the house was quiet – early Saturday mornings were some of the few golden moments of silence in the Gru household, and he and Lucy made sure to enjoy every second of it. Gru stood at the stove, his checkered apron tied around his waist, a dish towel thrown over his shoulder and a spatula in hand. She took a moment to chuckle silently at the sight: evil villain extraordinaire – domesticated._

_"What's up?" she asked._

_He held her gaze for a moment - "So I was theenking," - and then looked away to fiddle with the pancakes and bacon sizzling on the griddle. "We've just had our one year anniversary and all. . . "_

_She nodded with a grin, setting the paper down on the kitchen table. "And?"_

_"A-And I was wondereeng. . ." He turned down the burners before moving to lean against the bar, facing her, gesturing nervously with the spatula as he spoke. "I mean, the gurls adore you. Dey love you. And so do the minions. And, we've been dateeng for a while, and you're over a lot anyway, so I figured maybe – maybe it would be a good idea if – if –"_

_"Spit it out already, Gru!" she said, exasperated._

_His next words tumbled out in a rush. "I was wondereeng if you want to move in with me."_

_Lucy blinked. That was _not_ what she expected him to ask. Not at all. It took a long moment for the idea to process before it clicked in her brain and a smile exploded across her face. "Really?"_

_He eyed her cautiously, holding the spatula in front of him. "Y-Yes - ?"_

_She wiggled in her seat in the booth for a moment before jumping up and practically mowing him over with an enthusiastic hug. "That is such a good idea!" she exclaimed. "I would _love_ to!"_

_Tension leaked from Gru's frame, and a second later she felt his arms around her waist. "I am so glad you said yes," he admitted, "because askeeng you was a lot harder dan I thought it would be."_

_She laughed. "I could tell. But, of course I said yes. It'll be so much nicer to come home every night to you and the girls, instead of my empty old apartment." She pulled back slightly, catching his eyes. "Home just doesn't feel right without the chaos of your family in it."_

_"It would be so nice haveeng you here, Lucy," Gru murmured. "You're a part of dis family now, and whenever you're not here, it feels like we're meessing sometheeng."_

_She bounced in place, smiling eagerly. "I can't wait to tell the girls! They'll be so excited!" _

_Gru laughed at her enthusiasm and nodded. "We can tell dem over breakfast."_

Lucy grinned at the memory, hoisting a box from her bedroom and resting it on her hip. Gru was getting a lot better at making commitments and putting forward changes in their relationship. He had always been a man who knows what he wants, there was no questioning that - but he always showed hesitance when it came to the dating aspect. The fact that he asked her first meant worlds for their relationship.

She carried the box back down the short hall, passing the doors to the guest bathroom and coat closet before coming into the wide open living area, one half serving as a living room, and the other half divided into a kitchen and a dining room. The kitchen was tucked into the back corner, sectioned off by a half wall that boxed it in. The evidence of her packing frenzy was evident – bubble wrap and packing peanuts were scattered everywhere (to the joy of the two minions fighting over who got to pop all the bubbles on a stray bubble wrap sheet), and boxes occupied every flat surface available. Her apartment was small and nothing too fancy and she didn't have many possessions, but even so, packing and moving was such a tiring process. She couldn't wait to just get it over with.

Thankfully, help came in the form of Gru and his three young daughters. Gru opened the door, wobbling off balance as two minions pushed past his long legs to get into the house. He grabbed the doorknob with a startled noise, steadying himself and glaring at the oblivious yellow creatures. Lucy looked up at the sound to find her boyfriend's broad frame filling the doorway, his children peeking out from behind him.

"Gru, girls! Glad you made it." Lucy picked her way across the room, box still balanced on her hip. "I really need some help moving all this stuff, and the minions - well . . . - "

"-Cause more trouble dan dey fix," Gru replied. He stepped inside, a wry smile on his lips. "Beleeve me, I know."

Agnes scurried from Gru's side up to Lucy, where she happily bounced in place. "I'm so excited you're moving in, Lucy! It'll be like a giant sleepover, except _all the time!_"

"I'm excited too, kiddo!" Lucy said, reaching down to tug at her ponytail affectionately. "Now, how about you girls start helping the minions with the packing? Your dad and I will be there soon."

Margo nodded and began herding her sisters to the back of the house. The couple watched them pass before facing each other, a nervous, excited energy buzzing between them.

"So," Gru ventured, "please tell me I'm not the only one freakeeng out about dis."

Lucy's shoulders crumpled and she sighed, laughing gratefully. "Ugh, you have _no idea_. Freaking out doesn't even cover it."

"Well, I mean, dat's normal." He reached forward, gently taking the box from her hands and setting it atop a stack of boxes to his left. "Right? It is normal, isn't it?"

She nodded. "Definitely. I've only moved in with one other guy, ages ago, and I remember it feeling a lot like this." She paused. "Wait – haven't you ever moved in with a girlfriend, Gru?"

Of course, he'd told her about his past with dating, just as she'd told Gru her's. Lucy had more experience, that much was clear. But, if what Gru said was true, he'd dated some far more interesting people than Lucy had ever dabbled with; chief among them were two different Russian supervillains, an American business tycoon baddie, and a mad scientist from France. Suffice it to say, Gru had no qualms with relationships while in his villainous persona mainly because he could hide behind it (most of it was posturing, overblown confidence and mask upon mask of illusion) – but take that away, and he was the shy, self-conscious, sweet man that Lucy knew and loved.

"Oh no," he chuckled, though its tone didn't hold much happiness. "You know I am not really one for dateeng in the furst place . . . Whenever I did, I mainly stuck to the supervillain realm. And when you put two villains under the same roof, it ends badly. _Trust_ me."

"So, are you nervous about how this will turn out, putting a former villain and a good-guy agent under one roof?" she asked.

"Don't look at me," he said, "you're the one weeth the experience. What about whatever happened weeth dat last guy you moved in weeth?"

She glanced up at him, danger and a hint of daring in her gaze. "I don't think that'll happen in this case, Gru. Unless, of course, you'll warn me ahead of time that I'll come home to find you in bed with another woman?"

His eyebrows shot up, and it was almost amusing to watch him scramble frantically for words.

"N-No! Of course not – I deedn't mean – I would _never_ -!"

"Okay, okay, cool it Super-Dad," she relented, waving a hand. That little tidbit was something she hadn't included when she told him about her last serious boyfriend. She never really expected it to come up, but he asked, so she might as well have been honest. At least she knew now that the very thought of cheating would send Gru into mental-overload – a small comfort at the least. "I'm not being serious. I know you would never do that."

He calmed slightly, but still carried nervous tension in his broad shoulders. "A-Are you really worried about moveeng in? Because if you'd rather wait – "

"No way!" she exclaimed. "Gru, I am totally up for this thing. My nerves might be trying to give me cold feet, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let them." She stepped forward and placed her hands on his shoulders, fingers pressing into the solid, tensed muscle, trying to encourage him to relax. "I don't know exactly how this is gonna end up, but I'm willing to try because I know it'll be worth it."

Gru nodded, his shoulders slowly falling under her hands. "Me too," he said. "I've just never done anytheeng like dis before. I don't want to mess it up."

She soothed her hands over the lapels of his jacket. "You won't. It'll be an adjustment, though, having to make room for one more person in your home."

"Not at all," he said. "You belong dere, weeth me and the gurls. Like I told you before, it's like you're the meessing piece to our home."

Lucy grinned. "Well then," she said, sliding a hand in his. "let's get started packing, shall we? I'm dying to get home."

His fingers squeezed hers, and he surprised her with a soft peck. "Let's."

* * *

**So, there it is! I wrote this because I saw a cute little prompt about when your pairing/OTP decides to move in together. I figured it applied pretty well to Gru and Lucy, and decided to write a short little something. This is fairly shorter than previous chapters, too, for some reason****.**

**I figured Gru and Lucy would both be super excited for the move-in, but at the same time get nervous, freaking out, oh-my-god-I'm-actually-doing-this cold feet. Gru moreso than Lucy, because not only is Lucy more experienced in this type of thing, but because Gru has a difficult time making a huge commitment like this to anything. Once he does make the commitment, he follows through and is very true to his word (for example, the girls) but getting him to actually make it is like dragging him kicking and screaming. It's not that he doesn't love Lucy, because he obviously does. It has more to do with nerves and being vulnerable - opening another major part of his life to another person and trusting them not to hurt him or his girls in the process.**

**Anyway, I hope yall enjoyed it! Review, please!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Yay, I'm back with another chapter! Not much to say right now except that yall are going to hate me for this one, hahaha!**

**This is set five months into Gru and Lucy's relationship. Gru and Lucy get in deep trouble with Ramsbottom after a mission, and the two agents end up fighting over who's right and who's wrong. I hope yall like it! Review, please!**

* * *

Lucy could tell Gru was angry. It was palpable in the sharp click of the heels of his shoes against the floor and the way his fingers clenched and unclenched irritably at his sides. She felt her own ire roiling in her gut, flushing the back of her neck a hot red and causing a fluttering, excitable, nauseous feeling in her stomach. Neither of them spoke, though both had plenty to say.

The pair was walking in taut silence down one of the innumerable hallways of the AVL base, having just been through arguably one of the worst debriefings with Ramsbottom since the two paired up together as partners five months ago.

They'd returned from a mission two hours ago, where they were directed to infiltrate and shut down a villain's lair. The villain, a lower-level mark in the underground world, had manufactured, built, or otherwise stolen a countless number of bombs and other larger-scale incendiary devices. He intended to use his amassed armory to ransom the U.S. government out of a great deal of cash, or else he would blow up the greater side of the West Coast. Some of the bombs in his armory belonged to Gru, stolen straight from his lab. Gru had no inkling that anyone had even broken into his lab until he and Lucy were given the mission information. Needless to say, he was furious. However, the mission – though in a way successful – didn't go according to plan. Upon hearing what happened, Ramsbottom threatened suspension from the AVL for both agents, and gave them an earful that neither were likely to forget.

Gru had argued fiercely with the director, unlike anything Lucy had seen before. It lasted almost an hour before the rotund man had finally had enough and sent the two away with a warning - mess up again, and they'd find themselves on unpaid suspension for a month. Gru left the meeting fuming, with Lucy feeling no better off. Tensions were very high, not only between the two agents and Ramsbottom, but between Gru and Lucy themselves.

"Gru," Lucy said, breaking the uneasy silence, "we need to talk about what happened." Keeping her own anger out of her voice was difficult, but she knew that they needed to talk it out instead of letting their emotions stew. That would only make things worse. She paused as they reached a turn in the hallway, stepping into the corner along the wall. It was a fairly secluded place, and she was sure they wouldn't be interrupted by other agents. Gru clasped his hands behind his back crisply, only taking a step or two to follow her, but staying a good distance away. Lucy sighed, shaking her head. "Look, you're obviously mad - "

Gru groaned internally. He really didn't want to deal with this right now. He'd much rather go back to the lab and blow things up than start an argument with his girlfriend. "Of course I'm mad," he said, "I'm mad at pretty much everytheeng right now. Which is why I don't theenk we need to be talkeeng right now. We won't accomplish anytheeng by it. Let's just leave it be and go."

She shook her head again. "No, that's not the answer. Don't you think I'm angry too? This thing isn't gonna work itself out though, so we need to confront it now, before we get assigned another mission to work on."

"Oh, what, you really theenk Ramsbottom is going to geeve us another meession? After dat?" He scoffed. "Please."

Lucy drew herself up, planting her fist on her cocked hip. She was just about done with everything too, and her patience was at rope's end with him. "Okay, what gives?" she demanded. "Why are _you_ angry?"

"_Me?_" he echoed, stepping closer and gesturing widely at her. "Oh, I don't know, I guess I never expected my _partner_ to sell me out to Ramsbottom!"

Lucy bristled, feeling her hackles rising. "Sell you out? I didn't sell you out, I told him what happened!"

"You tried to save your own skin and throw me under the bus." Gru said firmly.

"I did not! He asked, so I told him the truth. It's not my fault you made the decisions you did!" She flattened her brows, not pleased with how steadily downhill this conversation was heading. "Our objective was to infiltrate and shut down the lair, and then grab the target to bring him back to headquarters. _Alive_. We failed our objective, and we nearly failed the mission."

"Dat punk had an arsenal of bombs!" he exclaimed. "What was I supposed to do when he triggered dem? Just stand dere?"

"Of course not, but you didn't have to leave him there either!"

Gru's long fingers rose to squeeze the bridge of his nose. A headache was forming between his eyes, and he _really _didn't need this right now. "We had _one minute_ to get out of dere when he triggered the bombs," he explained, his voice a forced calm. "_One. _We had already disabled most of the bombs, but not enough to seegnificantly reduce the explosion radius. If we wasted time fighting him and subduing him to bring him weeth us, the rest of the functioning bombs would have exploded and destroyed not only his lair, but five miles of the surrounding area. I disabled enough bombs during dat one minute so the explosion was reduced to only his lair. I theenk that's a fair trade."

"So instead, you decide to trap him in his own lair and go disable a few more bombs before leaving him to die?" she accused. "We were in an industrial district, Gru! No one was there!"

"You don't know dat! Dere could have been workers, actual people weeth families dere!"

"Our target was an 'actual person' with a family, too!" she insisted. "And what about if he had henchmen? We never had confirmation on that."

"You could've grabbed him just as easily, but you deedn't. I did what I did because I beleeved it was right. Who cares if some punk – who, _by the way_, wanted to bomb the entire West Coast – went down weeth the ship? If you ask me, he deserved it."

She grit her teeth, a frustrated, strangled noise in her throat. "You don't get to make those decisions, Gru! We had our orders, and you went against them."

"Oh no, no," he said, taking a step closer. "Dis isn't about orders or rules. You made it seem like I was the only one responsible for what happened, when I wasn't. You sold me out to Ramsbottom to save yourself."

She came forward from the wall with a fierce shove, meeting him midway. "Has it ever occurred to you that your decisions affect other people?" she asked angrily, a hint of hurt in her voice. "Or do you even care? I tried to tell you to stop when we were in that lair, but you didn't listen to me. I've been an agent here for far longer than you, and I was _so_ close to getting a little recognition for all of my hard work. They would've made me a senior agent, if it wasn't for this. So _pardon me_," she spat sarcastically, "if I told Ramsbottom what you were doing while I was busy trying to do my job."

"So what, you'd rather screw me over to get a promotion?" he accused.

"I didn't _betray_ you, for godsakes! This isn't about a job, and this isn't about the mission. This is about you not caring about or respecting anyone but _yourself!_"

Gru blinked, taken aback by her outburst. "W-What are you talkeeng about?"

She glared at him, not even bothering to hide her anger and disappointment. "I don't care if you were a villain, or if you used to be evil, Gru. But here at the AVL, we try not to kill people. We do things by the book. I tried to do things the right way, but you just pushed forward and did it the way you wanted to without even thinking of what might happen. It's like you don't even care enough to try to listen to me or my opinions. All you care about is yourself."

"Dat's not true!" he exclaimed, his angered expression making way for a startled one.

"Well, it certainly feels like it," she said. Lucy crossed her arms across her chest. Though she and Gru stood a mere arm's-length away from one another, she suddenly felt very cold and very alone. "You were too busy defending yourself to the director to even think about how this would affect me. You might've made the decision to leave the target behind, but the fallout comes down on both of us, regardless. We both face the consequences, not just you. You know, I won't take back what I said to Ramsbottom, but I will say this - I think he might have been right when he said you're not ready for the field."

"W-What?" he stammered, his voice suddenly much softer, holding none of the venom from before.

"When partners are out in the field working a mission, it's vital that they listen to and respect one another. It's part of the teamwork. Without that mutual communication and understanding, it'll fail every time. It just doesn't work."

A feeling of dread crept slowly up his spine. "What are you sayeeng?"

"I'm saying that until you prove to me that you can listen and that you care about what I have to say . . . I don't want to go on missions with you anymore."

Gru felt his heart drop straight into his stomach, a terrible knot forming in his throat that made it difficult to swallow, let alone breathe. "L-Lucy . . . "

"I'll let Ramsbottom know," she continued, unyielding. "He'll put us on hiatus as partners until further notice."

He rose a hand toward her, fingers twitching outward, before it fell again to his side. "Are you . . . are you - "

"No," she interrupted. "I'm not ending _this_," she gestured between herself and Gru briefly. "I'm not. I-I don't know, not yet anyway, I - " She shook her head, unable to look at him anymore. This was too difficult, too much too soon, and she couldn't process it all. Between her own anger and sadness and the torn look on Gru's face, she was lost. She had to get away from all this. "I can't do this right now. I'm going home." Lucy drew herself up, her arms tucked around herself, and began walking.

Gru turned, watching as she brushed by him without a second glance. "Lucy, w-wait!" He reached out once more, but she only quickened her pace down the hallway. He stood frozen, watching as she walked farther and farther away until she disappeared behind another corner. He felt an odd gnawing feeling in his stomach, and his head echoed with her words. _'I don't want to go on missions with you anymore', 'I'm not ending __this - _not yet anyway.' He squeezed the bridge of his nose again, his headache blooming into a full-blown migraine. "Oh boy," he muttered. "What did I do?"

* * *

When he had finally managed to get home, Gru went straight to the one place where he knew he could feel better - the lab. He had the minions set up a target range in one of the vast underground rooms, each red and white bulls-eye decorated with the visage of the AVL director. He knew that wasn't exactly mature behavior for a man in his fifties, but maturity be damned, he needed to _destroy _something. After a short perusal of his armory, he went for the obvious choice - a short-range rocket launcher. His own design, of course, built for closer, smaller targets and a more contained explosion. He made a mental note to himself as he left his armory room to beef up the security protocols - if that little wannabe villain could get in to steal his bombs, he shuddered to think who else might gain access.

Gru took position at the range, looked through the sights of the launcher and pulled the trigger. With a loud boom and a blast of heat, the Ramsbottom target was reduced to smithereens, splinters and burnt paper raining down from the sky. The clenching feeling in Gru's chest loosened somewhat, but not nearly enough. He moved to the next target, set on blowing up as many of them as necessary, so long as he could alleviate the horrible feeling consuming him.

His set his crosshairs on the middle of the director's round, angry face. Of course Gru chose Ramsbottom as a target, he reasoned to himself. It was the director's fault he was in this mess with Lucy anyway. Right? He fired another rocket. _Boom._

Well, if it wasn't Ramsbottom's fault, then it was that stupid punk of a villain, Gru thought, gritting his teeth. _Boom. _If it weren't for him and his plan, none of this would have happened.

And if it wasn't him, it was someone else's fault. It had to be. It wasn't Gru's fault. It just . . . wasn't. _Boom_.

Because if it was his fault, then he'd be the reason Lucy was upset. He'd be the one that hurt her. He'd be the one that put that awful look of sadness and disappointment in Lucy's eyes, a look that clasped an iron vice around Gru's heart and _squeezed _for all he was worth. He couldn't be the cause of that turmoil in her. He couldn't deal with the guilt and the shame that idea brought on. Gru never wanted to bring Lucy any pain, and surely he wanted her to know that he respected her a great deal. In fact, he was beginning to think he had fallen in love with her.

_Boom._

He'd been on his own, doing his own villainous work alone for so long that he'd forgotten that he could depend on other people. Gru was used to following one person's orders - his own. He did things his way, because that's all he'd ever had. Could he really have been so stubborn and so proud as to have ignored Lucy, and made her feel disrespected?

Gru groaned, shaking his head fiercely. This was too much to deal with.

_Boom._

"Dad? Are you down here?" The voice of Gru's eldest rang out across the massive room, followed by a call from his youngest.

"Daddy?"

Gru dropped the rocket launcher to his side and cupped a hand around his mouth. "Yes, I'm over here, keettens," he called.

His daughters appeared at the large entrance moments later, decked in ballet gear and hand-in-hand so as not to get lost (even though they knew the lab almost as well as they knew the house.)

Margo paused, taking in the destruction of the target range and the explosive weapon at her dad's hip. "Woah, what happened here?"

Gru shrugged a shoulder. "I was just . . . practiceeng," he fibbed. He lowered himself to one knee, welcoming Agnes into his arms as she ran to greet him. "Did your grandmother just bring you home from dance practice?"

Agnes nodded, climbing up on his shoulder to perch there. "She gave us cookies!"

Gru rolled his eyes, emotional baggage forgotten momentarily with the happy distraction of his daughters. "Wonderful. Just what you need, a sugar rush late at night."

Edith tugged on her cap with a grin. "Yeah, she said something like that before laughing and giving us more."

Margo frowned, nearing Gru and placing a hand on his shoulder, her eyes peering into his curiously. "Dad, are you okay?" she asked.

Gru blinked at her, wondering what on earth could have given him away. "O-Of course, Margo."

"No, something's wrong. Did something happen at work?"

That grabbed Agnes' attention, and she tugged at his ear. "Is it Lucy? Did something happen with Lucy? Is she okay?"

Gru sighed, reaching up and grabbing his youngest to set her gently on the floor. "Lucy is okay. She is just . . . upset."

Edith's eyes rounded owlishly. "Did you guys fight?" she asked, almost shocked.

"We had a - a disagreement, yes. But dis is not sometheeng you gurls should be worrying about. Why don't you just go back upstairs? I will be up soon, and den we can order pizza for deenner. How does dat sound?" Perhaps the promise of more terrible food would coax them away from the subject.

Margo, still looking suspicious, sighed and nodded. "Okay, I guess, if you don't want to talk about it. Edith, Agnes, come on. Let's go upstairs and put our ballet stuff away."

Edith followed after a moment's hesitation, but Agnes stayed behind. Gru looked down at her and rose a brow. "What is it, keetten?"

She looked down at her hands, twisting her fingers together. "If you and Lucy got in a fight, you should make up."

He shook his head with a soft exhale. "Keetten, it isn't always dat easy - "

She looked up and grabbed his arm for balance as she leaned toward him with wide, trusting eyes. "Yes it is!" she insisted. "My teacher told us that if we get into a fight, we should apologize. Then we forgive each other and everything is okay again."

"Agnes - "

"That's what you do when you love someone," she said simply. "Even if it's not your fault, you say you're sorry. 'Cause when you love someone, who cares who's right or wrong? All that matters is that you love them."

Gru blinked, unable to speak for a moment. She was right, of course. Somehow, this tiny, innocent child was wise enough to see things in a way that he hadn't even thought of. From the mouth of babes, he thought wryly. Once again, he was reminded how blessed he was to have his girls in his life. "You are right, keetten," he murmured, brushing her hair affectionately. "Thank you. Now, go find your seesters. I'll be right behind you."

Agnes smiled. "Okay!" She hopped up, pressing a kiss to his cheek before turning and toddling out of the room. Gru watched her leave before heaving a sigh and running a hand over his bald head. All of the sudden, he felt so much older than his fifty years. How could he be so foolish? Caught up in this battle between fault and innocence, right and wrong, when none of that should matter. All that mattered was Lucy, and he'd been so blinded by his pride that he almost missed that fact. His ignorance had nearly destroyed his relationship. That thought alone was sobering.

He knew what he needed to do now. That didn't mean doing it would be easy, though.

* * *

Lucy was late into work the next day, which was highly unusual for her. She mentioned nothing of the hours she spent driving aimlessly to vent her frustration by yelling at other drivers, or the early hours of the morning she spent curled under a multitude of blankets, trying desperately not to let any tears smudge her pillowcase and failing. Instead, she told an expectant Ramsbottom that her alarm clock didn't go off that morning. Though he didn't believe her, thankfully the director left it at that.

"Where's Gru?" she asked, settling down at the round, white table in the center of the headquarters.

"He called and said one of his daughters has a cold, so he will not be coming in today," Ramsbottom replied.

Her eyes narrowed. That didn't sound likely. The girls never got sick. More likely, he was just skipping work to avoid her, especially after last night. Lucy wasn't exactly sure how she should react to that. Instead, she hummed noncommittally in response. "By the way, sir, I wanted to let you know - Gru and I are on hiatus as partners. From now until further notice, I want to go on missions with a different partner."

Ramsbottom rose a brow, seeming mildly suprised. "Really? What brought that on, Agent Wilde?"

"Just personal disagreements, sir, but I promise it won't interfere with my own work on the field." She remained vague, because the last thing she wanted to do was drag her boss into her romantic life. That would just be too weird.

"I'll take your word for it, agent. Now, continuing on, we have a lot of work to do . . ."

* * *

It was a long, boring day of further debriefing and paperwork and reports and _blah_. Lucy was thankful when at the end of the night she could walk into her apartment, kick off her heels, strip down to her skivvies and flop down on her sofa. The past two days had been awful, and she just wanted them to end. She was habitually optimistic, though, and the promise of the next morning always brought hope to her.

Idly, she wondered if Gru would come back into work tomorrow, or if he would stay home again to avoid her. She grimaced. Lucy never meant to _hurt_ him when she said what she did, but she needed to express how his actions made her feel. It was the only way he would realize what he was doing - he could be oblivious sometimes, and Lucy's experience with men told her that sometimes they just needed things spelled out for them.

And he did hurt her. She knew he cared for her, but sometimes he was just careless. He didn't mean to, she was sure of that, but he did. She groaned, flipping on her back and squeezing a stray throw pillow to her chest. She hated fighting and she hated being mad. Especially with Gru. Thinking back on it, this was probably the first and biggest serious fight they'd had so far. Something in her stomach knotted painfully as she realized that the first big fight could make or break a relationship. And what was it she'd said earlier to him?, she thought -_ 'I'm not ending it - not yet anyway.'_

"Ohhh man," she groaned. This was not how she wanted things to end. She pressed a hand to her eyes, feeling the burning pressure of tears springing up behind her lids. "No, not again, I'm not going to cry again."

Suddenly, her phone that she'd tossed on the coffee table earlier began to vibrate loudly. Lucy peeked at it from between her fingers. Who would be texting her at this time of night? She reached over and grabbed the phone, looking at the message. It was from Gru. She brushed her thumb errantly over the button, debating whether or not to ignore him. Deciding that was too petty, Lucy opened the message and look at the short line of text.

_'If I admitted that I'm an idiot, would you talk to me?'_

She smirked despite herself, before answering._ 'You are an idiot. And you could've talked to me, if you didn't skip out on work this morning.' _She hit send, then reclined back on the sofa to wait for a response.

Seconds later, her phone buzzed again. _'I know. But after what happened yesterday . . . I didn't want anything else bad to happen.'_

Lucy rolled her eyes - she was not getting into this over text. _'So why did you text me?'_, she asked, hoping to get him to cut to the chase.

A moment later, he replied. _'I wanted to know if I could talk to you. In person. Is that okay?'_

Oh. She blinked at the screen, a bright box of white light in her otherwise dark apartment. She weighed her options; one on hand, she really would like to get this sorted out. On the other, she didn't want it devolving into another shouting match. This wasn't going to work itself out, though, so Lucy bit the bullet, shrugged, and replied, _'Sure. When do you want to come over? Or should I go over there?'_

Five seconds later, there was a knocking at her front door. Lucy jumped, startled, and turned to look. There's no way . . . , she thought. She rose, rushing to her room to tug her over-sized sleepshirt over her head before padding to the front door. She peered through the peephole and saw Gru standing there, hands behind his back, fidgeting and looking as nervous as he was on their first date. She took a moment to take him in, feeling victorious that their fight had turned him into such a nervous wreck. He had even changed his status-quo outfit for something more comfortable, opting for a pairs of jeans with his usual turtleneck sweater and - she had to stifle a snort - were those _slippers? _He must've just tucked the girls in and rushed over on impulse, because ex-villain or not, he still had an image to keep - and the man who stole the moon would not abide being seen wearing slippers in public. It was actually somewhat endearing, she thought, that he was in such a hurry to see her that he forgot everything else. Hopefully whatever conversation they had would be better than their last one.

She took a deep breath, the unlocked and opened her door. "Gru," she said, keeping her voice light. "I didn't think you'd be here so quickly."

His brows rose and he unclasped his hands from behind his back. "Oh. Well, I can come back later, or just leave if you want - "

"No, I said I wanted to talk to you anyway, so come on, get inside." She stepped to the side, opening the door wider so he could pass by. He hesitated for a second before walking into her apartment, his eyes roaming around the interior though he'd seen it dozens of times. She shut the door behind him, locking it before following behind him. She went back to the sofa, taking a seat at one end and gesturing for him to take the other. He sat sown gingerly then glanced up at her, looking lost and unsure. "So what did you want to talk about?" she asked.

"I wanted to talk about our argument the other day," he said.

"And?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, not quite able to meet her eyes. "And I wanted to say . . . dat I was wrong, and I'm sorry."

She paused, shocked. She did not expect that, especially from _Gru,_ of all people. He never admitted when he was wrong, and it was very rare for him to apologize. "Y-You are?"

He nodded, sighing softly. "I was stupeed to do what I did, and even more stupeed to theenk dat you were trying to betray me. I just got so caught up in doeeng theengs the way I've always done them - by myself. I forgot dat I had a partner who I needed to leesten to and respect. And I do, I do respect you. I guess I just . . . lost sight of dat, for a moment." He looked back up at her and the corner of his mouth crooked upward in a wry smile. "I understand if you're steell mad at me. I just needed to say dat."

She blinked disbelievingly before finding her voice. "I honestly didn't expect you to come by and say any of that. I'm suprised."

"I know. I don't say theengs like dat enough when I'm wrong, and I should. It's just deeffeecult for me sometimes. Old habits die hard, I suppose. And I promise," he said, hesitantly reaching out a hand to take hers. She let him, and he ran his thumb over the backs of her knuckles. "I do respect you. I do care about you. You are the smartest, coolest, funniest, most beautiful woman I have ever met, or ever weell meet. I'm sorry dat I made you feel any less dan dat."

Wow, Lucy thought. That was possibly one of the sweetest and most romantic things she'd ever heard someone say to her. And after the blow-out they had, she was touched that he humbled himself enough to come to her and ask her forgiveness. He showed her just how much he respected her by apologizing like this, just like she'd asked him to. She let a smile lighten her face. "Well, after an apology like that, how could I stay mad at you?" she asked playfully.

He grinned, relieved as that strangling in his chest finally disappeared. "So, you forgeeve me?"

She squeezed his hand gently. "Yes, I forgive you. Thanks for apologizing, Gru. I know it's difficult for you, so it means a lot to me." She drew closer, wrapping her arms around his neck. He returned the hug eagerly, not quite believing that he almost let this incredible woman slip away from him. "I hate fighting," she murmured, words warm and muffled against his shoulder.

"Me too," he agreed. "Dis was horrible. Can we not fight ever again?"

"Deal," Lucy said happily. "So, what now?"

"I don't know," Gru said, pulling back slightly and shrugging. "I honestly had no idea how dis would go, so I deedn't plan anytheeng."

"Where are the gurls?"

"Dey're at home," he replied. "I keessed dem goodnight and den had the minions watch over dem."

"So, you're free for the night?"

"Well, yes, I suppose I am - "

"Good." She grinned in a way that made Gru blush red. "Because I have some ideas, _partner_."

* * *

**So, on a scale of one to ten, how mad are you that I almost made them break up? Hahaha! I enjoyed writing this one though, because a good conflict is always fun. I almost considered having Lucy break it off with Gru in the hallway, but then I decided to not be too cruel and just have her quit as his partner.**

**I think that Gru, for how much that he's trying to be a good person for Lucy and his daughters, still has a very villainous mindset. He's used to the old days, where he worked on his own and didn't have to listen to anyone but himself (and sometimes Dr. Nefario when he felt like it.) So as much as he loves Lucy, he's going to end up brushing her off from time to time out of habit. And Lucy, being the enthusiastic go-getter that she is, hates when people undervalue or ignore her. She worked hard to get where she is with the AVL, and she won't stand for being pushed around, especially not when it's her boyfriend doing it. But, like you saw in the end they both kind of got over it, apologized (mainly Gru) and made up.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! I hope yall liked it! Review, please!**


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